Mill Farm , Stoney Hills, BURNHAM-ON-CROUCH, CM0 8QA

Land to the rear of Mill Farm: Proposed 4 new chalet styled bungalows

Authority: Maldon District Council
Appeal type: minor · Planning Appeal
Procedure: Written Representations
Development: residential · Minor Dwellings
Inspector: Berry A

Main issues, as the Inspector framed them

The effect of the proposed development on the integrity of the Crouch and Roach Estuaries Special Protection Area and Ramsar Site
The effect of the proposed development on the character and appearance of the surrounding area
Appeal A only: the effect of the proposed development on the living conditions of future occupiers, with particular reference to outlook

What decided it

The failure to properly secure mitigation for the Special Protection Area through a signed unilateral undertaking meant the proposal could not be assessed as having adequately mitigated its significant effect on the integrity of the designated site, triggering the exception in paragraph 11(d)(i) of the Framework.

Although the Council cannot demonstrate five-year housing land supply, the application of policies in the Framework protecting habitats and biodiversity (the SPA being a protected area) provides a clear reason for refusing the development, and the proposal does not benefit from the presumption in favour of sustainable development in paragraph 11 of the Framework.

Framework references: 11

Plan policies cited: Policy D1 of the Maldon District Approved Local Development Plan 2014-2029

Judgments cited: People over Wind and Sweetman v Coillte Teoranta ECLI:EU:C:2018:244

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.