®Planning appeal decision
1 Whempstead Road, Benington, STEVENAGE, SG2 7BX
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
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.
Framework references: 11, 57, 65, 68, 75, 79, 85
Plan policies cited: Policy GBR2, Policy VILL2, Policy DPS2, Policy TRA1, Policy ED1, Policy ED2, Policy HOU3, Policy DES3, Policy DES4, Policy HOU2, Policy TRA2
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.