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Dismissed10 May 20223285817

Widnes Golf Club, Highfield Road, Widnes, WA8 7DT

Planning appeal 3285817 at Widnes Golf Club, Highfield Road, Widnes, WA8 7DT (Halton Borough Council) was dismissed on 10 May 2022 by Inspector Cridland R, following an inquiry. The main issue, as the Inspector framed it: whether the site offers an acceptable location for the proposed development having regard to its current use as an 18-hole golf course.

for the erection of 233 dwellings, reconfiguration of golf course, demolition of existing club house and associated buildings and the erection of new club house and green keepers store, creation of new vehicular accesses, roads, car parking, green footpath link and ancillary development

Authority
Halton Borough Council
Appeal type
major · Planning Appeal
Procedure
Inquiry
Development
residential · Major dwellings
Inspector
Cridland R
Postcode
WA8 7DT

Main issues, as the Inspector framed them

  • whether the site offers an acceptable location for the proposed development having regard to its current use as an 18-hole golf course
  • the effect of the proposed development on highway safety
  • the effect of the proposed development on flood risk and drainage
  • the effect of the proposed development on the character and appearance of the surrounding area and trees, including protected trees

What decided it

The failure to demonstrate that the golf course was surplus to requirements or that equivalent/better replacement recreational provision would be secured, resulting in conflict with DALP Policy HE6 and NPPF paragraph 99, compounded by harm to character, appearance and trees, outweighed the housing benefits.

The significant weight given to the delivery of 233 homes (25% affordable) and moderate weight given to other benefits were outweighed by the substantial weight given to conflict with DALP Policies HE6, CS(R)20, HE1 and HE5, leading to a finding of conflict with the development plan as a whole.

What the Inspector cited

Development plan policies
HE6HE1HE5CS(R)20C1CS23HE9CS(R)13GR1GR2
National Planning Policy Framework
Paragraph 99Paragraph 98Paragraph 11Paragraph 110Paragraph 167Paragraph 174

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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More decisions in Halton

The authority’s record since 2016 · every decision in 2022

  1. Allowed21 March 20253354344
    Land at Green Oaks Centre, Green Oaks Way, Widnes, Cheshire, WA8 6UD
  2. Allowed2 August 20243341535
    132 Halton Road, Runcorn, Cheshire, WA7 5RW
  3. Dismissed6 October 20266013068
    Land to the West of Ashley Way, Widnes, WA8 7UE
  4. Unknown8 May 20263372126
    Rotherham House Lunts Heath Road, Widnes, WA8 5BB
  5. Notice varied and upheld8 May 20263372125
    Rotherham House, Lunts Heath Road, Widnes, Cheshire, WA8 5BB

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.