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Dismissed13 September 20213272074

Epsom Ewell & St. Hellier Nhs Trust, Epsom General Hospital Dorking Road, Epsom, KT18 7EG

Planning appeal 3272074 at Epsom Ewell & St. Hellier Nhs Trust, Epsom General Hospital Dorking Road, Epsom, KT18 7EG (Epsom and Ewell Borough Council) was dismissed on 13 September 2021 by Inspector Prentis D, following an inquiry. The main issue, as the Inspector framed it: the effect of the proposals on the character and appearance of the area.

demolition of the existing hospital buildings, accommodation block and associated structures and redevelopment of the site to provide a new care community for older people arranged in two buildings, comprising 302 care residences, 10 care apartments and 28 care suites providing transitional care, together with ancillary communal and support services Use Class C2, 24 key worker units Use Class C3, children’s nursery Use Class E, as well as associated back of house and service areas, car and cycle parking, altered vehicular and pedestrian access, landscaping, private amenity space and public open space. Appeal B: APP/P3610/W/21/3276483 Epsom General Hospital, Dorking Road, Epsom KT18 7EG

Authority
Epsom and Ewell Borough Council
Appeal type
major · Planning Appeal
Procedure
Inquiry
Development
residential · Other Major Developments
Inspector
Prentis D
Postcode
KT18 7EG

Main issues, as the Inspector framed them

  • the effect of the proposals on the character and appearance of the area
  • the effect of the proposals on the historic environment
  • the effect of the proposals on the living conditions of neighbouring residents
  • whether the proposals would make satisfactory provision for affordable housing and the infrastructure required to support the development

What decided it

The decisive factor was the height and massing of the buildings relative to their context: in Appeal A this caused significant harm to character and appearance that outweighed the benefits, whereas the reduced height of Appeal B avoided such harm and allowed the scheme's benefits to prevail.

For Appeal A, the adverse effects of the harm to character/appearance (assessed against the Framework as a whole) significantly and demonstrably outweighed the substantial housing, affordable housing, extra care, brownfield and economic benefits, leading to dismissal; for Appeal B, the same order of benefits, combined with good design and only limited localised townscape harm, outweighed the identified less-than-substantial heritage harm and the scheme accorded with the development plan as a whole, leading to the appeal being allowed.

What the Inspector cited

Development plan policies
Policy CS5Policy CS8Policy CS9Policy DM5Policy DM9Policy DM10Policy DM11Policy DM13Policy DM21
National Planning Policy Framework
Paragraph 11Paragraph 60Paragraph 62Paragraph 120Paragraph 126Paragraph 130Paragraph 202

How the Inspector dealt with each one is set out in the app, in order: the development plan, national policy, housing land supply, other considerations and the planning balance, beside the letter.

See how each was applied

The decision letter

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The authority’s record since 2016 · every decision in 2021

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The main issues, what decided it, the planning balance and the policies and judgments listed as cited are read from the published letter by Town Planner Pro and are our summary, not the Inspector’s words; the letter itself is the record. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Research, not advice.

In the app this decision sits on the map beside every appeal around it, with its letter to read and the main issues, policies and judgments cited picked out.