®Planning appeal decision
Sutton Court Farm Easthampstead Road, WOKINGHAM, RG40 3BS
‘change of use of building and land from residential to a mixed use of residential and car rentals’
- Authority
- Wokingham Borough Council
- Appeal type
- minor · Planning Appeal
- Procedure
- Written Representations
- Development
- employment-industrial · Change of use
- Inspector
- Conde L
Main issues, as the Inspector framed them
- whether the appeal sites are a suitable location for the development with regards to accessibility
- the effect of the proposed development on the character and appearance of the area
- Appeal B only: the effect of the development on the living conditions of occupants of neighbouring properties, in respect of noise
What decided it
The adverse impacts of the developments—poor accessibility, significant harm to rural character and appearance, and in Appeal B's case unacceptable noise impacts on neighbouring residents—substantially and demonstrably outweigh the modest economic benefits when assessed against the Framework as a whole under paragraph 11d.
The modest social and economic contributions through employment were given moderate weight, but the substantial harm to character and appearance, poor accessibility, lack of sustainability, and for Appeal B the substantial harm to neighbouring living conditions from noise, substantially and demonstrably outweighed these benefits under the tilted balance.
Framework references: 9, 11, 84, 85
Plan policies cited: Core Strategy Policy CP1, Core Strategy Policy CP3, Core Strategy Policy CP6, Core Strategy Policy CP9, Core Strategy Policy CP11, Core Strategy Policy CP15, Local Plan Policy CC01, Local Plan Policy CC02, Borough Design Guide Policy R23
Judgments cited: Eastleigh BC v SSHCLG and Ors [2019] EWHC 1862 (Admin)
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.