®Planning appeal decision
Adjoining Church Hall, St Marys Church,, High Street, Kemsing, Sevenoaks, TN15 6NA
Planning appeal 3306277 at Adjoining Church Hall, St Marys Church,, High Street, Kemsing, Sevenoaks, TN15 6NA (Sevenoaks District Council) was allowed on 8 July 2024 by Inspector Whelan P, by written representations. The main issue, as the Inspector framed it: whether the proposed development would preserve the setting of the grade II* listed building, the Church of St. Mary.
a new vicarage and carport with access through the village carpark
- Authority
- Sevenoaks District Council
- Appeal type
- minor · Planning Appeal
- Procedure
- Written Representations
- Development
- residential · Minor Dwellings
- Inspector
- Whelan P
- Postcode
- TN15 6NA
Main issues, as the Inspector framed them
- whether the proposed development would preserve the setting of the grade II* listed building, the Church of St. Mary
- whether the proposed development would preserve or enhance the character or appearance of the Kemsing Conservation Area
- the effect of the development on open space
What decided it
The Council's inability to demonstrate a five-year supply of deliverable housing sites triggered the tilted balance under paragraph 11(d)(ii) of the Framework, which applied because no clear reason for refusal was found when heritage and other protective policies were applied, and the benefits of the proposal outweighed the moderate harm to designated open space.
The moderate harm to designated open space and conflict with policy GI2 and SP10 was outweighed by the considerable enhancement of the appearance of the Kemsing Conservation Area, the contribution to housing supply (accorded moderate weight), and economic benefits (accorded very moderate weight), with the presumption in favour of sustainable development applying.
What the Inspector cited
- Development plan policies
- Policy EN4 of the Sevenoaks Allocations and Development Management Plan 2015Policy SP1 of the Sevenoaks Core Strategy 2011Policy GI2 of the ADMPPolicy SP10 of the Core Strategy
- National Planning Policy Framework
- Paragraph 11Paragraph 103
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
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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.