The Lodge Rectory Lane, Rivenhall, WITHAM, CM8 3HJ

the erection of 3 No. 2-bed single-storey bungalows and garages with a new access off Rectory Lane

Authority: Braintree District Council
Appeal type: minor · Planning Appeal
Procedure: Written Representations
Development: residential · Minor Dwellings
Inspector: Barnes D

Main issues, as the Inspector framed them

Whether the proposed development would be in a sustainable location

What decided it

The approved 230-dwelling scheme on adjacent land to the east materially changed the locational circumstances of the appeal site, making it reasonable to judge the proposed dwellings as locationally related to that approved development rather than isolated homes in the countryside, and this change in circumstances combined with the housing land supply shortfall tipped the tilted balance in favour of the appeal.

The adverse impacts of locating the development outside the defined development boundary and in open countryside were outweighed by the substantial weight given to the changed circumstances arising from the approved adjacent scheme, the change to character and appearance that would result, the contribution to housing land supply shortfall, and other material considerations including sustainable travel opportunities.

Framework references: 11

Plan policies cited: Policy SP3, Policy LPP1

Judgments cited: Corbett v Cornwall County Council [2022] EWCA Civ 1069

Read the decision letter on the Inspectorate’s site

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.

What an account adds

Draw a red line around your site and the appraisal follows.

Heritage. Listed buildings by grade and distance, conservation areas, scheduled monuments, registered parks and gardens, heritage at risk.
Landscape and environment. Green belt, national parks and national landscapes, SSSIs, ancient woodland, SPA, SAC and Ramsar sites, nutrient catchments.
Flooding. Flood zones 2 and 3, surface water, and both again with climate change.
Transport. The 800 metre station catchment and service frequency, bus stops with their weekday frequency, the cycle network, and the Framework’s transport tests measured for the site.

Then the development plan position, the housing land supply as an Inspector last accepted it, and every appeal decided around the site with its letter.

Every English appeal since 2016, with the letter behind it wherever the Inspectorate published one. Searched by meaning as well as by words, with the key case law counted live across the letters.

Casework that chases the deadlines. Applications, appeals and conditions with their statutory dates.

The judgement stays yours. The tool gathers the material and dates it.