Land that abuts Pine Acres, Birch Lane, Ascot, SL5 8RF

the erection of three detached houses

Authority: Bracknell Forest Borough Council
Appeal type: minor · Planning Appeal
Procedure: Written Representations
Development: residential · Minor Dwellings
Inspector: Parsons J

Main issues, as the Inspector framed them

the effects of the proposals on (a) the character and appearance of the area, with reference to trees covered by Tree Preservation Order
(b) biodiversity
(c) the integrity of the Thames Heaths Basin Special Protection Area (THBSPA)
(d) Protected Species

What decided it

For Appeals A and B, the absence of mechanisms to secure SPA mitigation and the harm to character and appearance and biodiversity were decisive; for Appeal C, the s106 agreement securing SPA mitigation and the absence of harm to character, biodiversity and protected species were decisive.

Appeals A and B: the housing benefits and deficient five-year housing land supply were outweighed by moderate weight given to policy conflicts on character and appearance and full weight given to conflicts on trees, biodiversity and SPA protection; Appeal C: no material considerations indicated permission should be refused as the proposal complied with the development plan and caused no harm to the main issues.

Framework references: 11, 174

Plan policies cited: Policy CS1, Policy CS7, Policy CS9, Policy CS14, Policy EN1, Policy EN3, Policy EN8, Policy EN20, Policy H5, Policy LP46, Policy NRM6

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.