Church House, Lightwood road, Lightwood, Stoke-On-Trent, ST3 7NN

Change of Use & Extension to existing garage to form a 2 Bedroom Annexe associated to the dwelling known as ‘Church House

Authority: Stoke-on-Trent City Council
Appeal type: minor · Planning Appeal
Procedure: Written Representations
Development: residential · Change of use
Inspector: Caine M

Main issues, as the Inspector framed them

Whether the proposal would be inappropriate development in the Green Belt having regard to relevant development plan policies and the National Planning Policy Framework
The effect of the proposal on the openness of the Green Belt, and the character and appearance of the area
Whether any harm by reason of inappropriateness, and any other harm, would be clearly outweighed by other considerations, so as to amount to very special circumstances required to justify the proposal

What decided it

The proposal constitutes inappropriate development in the Green Belt that would result in disproportionate additions to the original building and harm to openness, with no benefits to outweigh this harm or demonstrate very special circumstances.

Framework references: 137, 149, 150

Plan policies cited: Policy CSP1 of the Newcastle-Under-Lyme and Stoke-On-Trent Core Spatial Strategy 2006-2026 (2009)

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.

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