®Planning appeal decision
Land at and Adjacent Hulton Park, Manchester Road, Over Hulton, Bolton, BL5 1BH
Planning appeal 3299644 at Land at and Adjacent Hulton Park, Manchester Road, Over Hulton, Bolton, BL5 1BH (Bolton Metropolitan Borough Council) was allowed on 25 October 2022 by Inspector Young D, following an inquiry. The main issue, as the Inspector framed it: Whether the harm to the Green Belt, and any other relevant harm, is clearly outweighed by other considerations, so as to amount to the very special circumstances necessary to justify it.
Restoration of Hulton Park and heritage assets and development of a golf resort (Part A, full permission) together with outline permission for up to 1,036 dwellings, village centre, village hall, allotments, primary school, short stay holiday accommodation and associated infrastructure (Part B)
- Authority
- Bolton Metropolitan Borough Council
- Appeal type
- major · Planning Appeal
- Procedure
- Inquiry
- Development
- leisure-sport · Other Major Developments
- Inspector
- Young D
- Postcode
- BL5 1BH
Main issues, as the Inspector framed them
- Whether the harm to the Green Belt, and any other relevant harm, is clearly outweighed by other considerations, so as to amount to the very special circumstances necessary to justify it
- Whether the scheme changes would give rise to additional Green Belt and/or other harm beyond that associated with the consented scheme
- Whether the scheme changes would result in the same level of benefits to be weighed against the harm
- Dependent on the above, whether very special circumstances still exist for the proposed development
What decided it
The appeal scheme delivered materially greater benefits and less Green Belt/heritage harm than the fallback consented scheme, so that very special circumstances clearly outweighed the identified Green Belt and other harms.
The substantial Green Belt harm and lesser non-Green Belt harms (landscape character, agricultural land, out-of-date settlement boundary policies) were clearly outweighed by the heritage enhancement, very substantial socio-economic benefits, substantial ecological benefits, very significant highway benefits and the significant reduction in Green Belt harm compared with the consented scheme, such that very special circumstances existed and the development plan as a whole was complied with.
What the Inspector cited
- Development plan policies
- OA3OA4CG6APCG1CG4.1CG4.2
- National Planning Policy Framework
- Paragraph 148Paragraph 11Paragraph 174Paragraph 186
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 appliedThe decision letter
Town Planner Pro holds this letter. The Appeals plan opens it and every other letter we hold, all of them searchable, with the main issues and what decided each case picked out. We do not show letters on the free site because they carry people’s names and addresses.
With an account
What an account adds to this decision
More decisions in Bolton
The authority’s record since 2016 · every decision in 2022
- Allowed13 October 202660112026 Horrocks Hill Farm, Scout Road, Bolton, BL1 7NZ
- Dismissed4 March 202660028491 Ascot Road, Little Lever, Bolton, BL3 1ED
- Split Decision6 January 20263374528Kestrel Vikew, Hampsons Farm, Coalpit Road, Bolton, BL1 7PE
- Dismissed5 November 2025337281520 Duxbury Avenue, Little Lever, Bolton, Bolton, BL3 1PX
- Allowed24 October 2025336508739 Turner Street, Westhoughton, Bolton, BL5 2DZ
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.