Land adj Strawberry Cottage, Hinckley Road, Sapcote, LE9 4LG

Main issues, as the Inspector framed them

• whether the appeal site would be a suitable location for the proposed development, having regard to the development plan and national policy including the effect of the proposal on the character and appearance of the area
• whether the proposal would give rise to highway safety issues

What decided it

The conflict with the development plan as a whole, arising from the location in countryside outside the settlement boundary where lower levels of development are anticipated and where housing requirements have been exceeded, combined with the adverse harm to character and appearance, could not be outweighed by the benefits of self-build provision in the context of a positive housing land supply position.

The very significant harm to character and appearance and the conflict with the development plan's strategy to direct development to sustainable locations outweighed the very positive weight of providing self-build plots, particularly given the Council's positive housing land supply position and the absence of a binding obligation to secure the self-build use.