®Planning appeal decision
Former Mondi/Holcombe Mill, Bridge Street, Ramsbottom, BL0 0BS
Planning appeal 3302543 at Former Mondi/Holcombe Mill, Bridge Street, Ramsbottom, BL0 0BS (Bury Metropolitan Borough Council) was dismissed on 14 February 2023 by Inspector Hitchcock R, by written representations. The main issue, as the Inspector framed it: the effect of the development on flood risk.
the erection of 72 dwellings including the retention and conversion of 2 existing buildings, the retention of a chimney and the demolition of a derelict building, together with engineering operations to create a development platform and associated parking, landscaping, drainage, the layout of internal estate roads and footways and other associated works
- Authority
- Bury Metropolitan Borough Council
- Appeal type
- major · Planning Appeal
- Procedure
- Written Representations
- Development
- residential · Major dwellings
- Inspector
- Hitchcock R
- Postcode
- BL0 0BS
Main issues, as the Inspector framed them
- the effect of the development on flood risk
- the effect of the development on highway safety and capacity
What decided it
The development would fail to meet the exception test for flood risk development because it could not be demonstrated to be safe for its lifetime for vulnerable occupants, particularly regarding safe evacuation routes during flood events, and there was insufficient evidence to rule out residual flood risks from multiple sources.
Although the Council could not demonstrate a 5-year housing land supply (1.7 years) which would normally engage the tilted balance in favour of sustainable development, the flood risk policies in the Framework provide a clear reason for refusal under paragraph 11(d)(i), displacing the presumption in favour of sustainable development; the potential adverse impacts of granting permission would not significantly and demonstrably outweigh the benefits.
What the Inspector cited
- Development plan policies
- Policy EN5/1Policy H2/2Policy HT4Policy H4/1
- National Planning Policy Framework
- Paragraph 11Paragraph 55Paragraph 111Paragraph 163Paragraph 164Paragraph 165Paragraph 167Paragraph 219
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
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With an account
What an account adds to this decision
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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.