Land on the north-west side of The Ridgeway, Northaw, EN6 4BQ

Authority: Welwyn Hatfield Council
Appeal type: enforcement · Enforcement Notice
Procedure: Written Representations
Development: leisure-sport · Change of use
Inspector: Jones R

Main issues, as the Inspector framed them

whether the proposal would be inappropriate development in the Green Belt having regard to the NPPF and relevant development plan policies
the effect on the openness of the Green Belt
the effect on the character and appearance of the area
the effect on the ancient woodland
the effect on the SSSI
if the development is inappropriate, whether the harm by reason of inappropriateness, and any other harm, is clearly outweighed by other considerations so as to amount to the very special circumstances required to justify the development

What decided it

The material change of use to a mixed leisure and dog walking use in the Green Belt, combined with facilitating structures and hardstandings that harm openness and the character of ancient woodland, constitutes inappropriate development for which no very special circumstances exist to justify permission.

Framework references: 149, 150, 175

Plan policies cited: Policy GBSP1, Policy RA10, Policy D1, Policy D2, Policy R17, Policy R13, Emerging Policy SADM 34

Read the decision letter on the Inspectorate’s site

The main issues and the deciding factor are read from the published letter by Town Planner Pro; the letter itself is the record. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Research, not advice.

What an account adds

Draw a red line around your site and the appraisal follows.

Heritage. Listed buildings by grade and distance, conservation areas, scheduled monuments, registered parks and gardens, heritage at risk.
Landscape and environment. Green belt, national parks and national landscapes, SSSIs, ancient woodland, SPA, SAC and Ramsar sites, nutrient catchments.
Flooding. Flood zones 2 and 3, surface water, and both again with climate change.
Transport. The 800 metre station catchment and service frequency, bus stops with their weekday frequency, the cycle network, and the Framework’s transport tests measured for the site.

Then the development plan position, the housing land supply as an Inspector last accepted it, and every appeal decided around the site with its letter.

Every English appeal since 2016, with the letter behind it wherever the Inspectorate published one. Searched by meaning as well as by words, with the key case law counted live across the letters.

Casework that chases the deadlines. Applications, appeals and conditions with their statutory dates.

The judgement stays yours. The tool gathers the material and dates it.