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Dismissed24 January 20233303408

1 Whempstead Road, Benington, Stevenage, SG2 7BX

Planning appeal 3303408 at 1 Whempstead Road, Benington, Stevenage, SG2 7BX (East Hertfordshire District Council) was dismissed on 24 January 2023 by Inspector Woodward M, following a hearing. The main issue, as the Inspector framed it: Whether or not the appeal sites are an appropriate location for housing, having particular regard to local and national policies and the accessibility of services and facilities.

demolition and removal of all poultry houses and other buildings and the erection in their place of 12no detached dwelling houses (8no market houses and 4no affordable houses) with garages and car parking including the change of use of the land to C3 residential, together with alterations to the existing vehicular access and driveway off Whempstead Road with childrens’ play space, new turning head and visitor car parking

Authority
East Hertfordshire District Council
Appeal type
major · Planning Appeal
Procedure
Hearing
Development
residential · Major dwellings
Inspector
Woodward M
Postcode
SG2 7BX

Main issues, as the Inspector framed them

  • Whether or not the appeal sites are an appropriate location for housing, having particular regard to local and national policies and the accessibility of services and facilities.
  • The extent to which the proposals would affect the employment generating potential of the appeal sites, and any harm arising as a result.
  • Whether the proposals would make adequate provision for infrastructure (Appeals A and B).
  • The effect of the proposal on the character and appearance of the area (Appeal A).
  • The effect of the proposals on highway safety (Appeals A and B).

What decided it

The unsustainable, out-of-settlement-boundary location of the appeal sites, which conflicted with the development plan and was found to significantly and demonstrably outweigh the housing benefits even under the tilted balance.

The significant weight attributed to the unsustainable location and conflict with the development plan (plus, for Appeal B, the lack of affordable housing) was found to significantly and demonstrably outweigh the moderate-to-significant benefits of housing, self-build and affordable housing delivery, so the tilted balance under paragraph 11d)(ii) did not favour granting permission in any of the three appeals.

What the Inspector cited

Development plan policies
Policy GBR2Policy VILL2Policy DPS2Policy TRA1Policy ED1Policy ED2Policy HOU3Policy DES3Policy DES4Policy HOU2Policy TRA2
National Planning Policy Framework
Paragraph 11Paragraph 57Paragraph 65Paragraph 68Paragraph 75Paragraph 79Paragraph 85

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.

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The decision letter

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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.

In the app this decision sits on the map beside every appeal around it, with its letter to read and the main issues, policies and judgments cited picked out.