Land to South of Dukes Road, Fontwell, Westergate, Arundel, BN18 0SP

Authority: Arun District Council
Appeal type: minor · Planning Appeal
Procedure: Written Representations
Development: residential · Minor Dwellings
Inspector: Buchanan R

Main issues, as the Inspector framed them

whether the appeal site is a suitable location for the proposal with reference to the development plan spatial strategy, including accessibility to local services and facilities
its effect on the character and appearance of the area, including with regard to layout and access

What decided it

The proposal would cause unacceptable demonstrable harm to the character and appearance of the area and would not be sustainably located with safe accessibility to local services, and these adverse impacts have substantial weight that outweighs the benefits of housing delivery despite the housing land supply shortfall.

The moderate social, economic and environmental benefits of 9 dwellings and housing delivery were outweighed by the substantial adverse impacts on character and appearance, location suitability, and sustainability, such that the presumption in favour of sustainable development did not apply.

Framework references: 11, 14, 80, 12

Plan policies cited: Policy C SP1, Policy SD SP2, Policy D DM1, Policy EH1, Policy H6

Judgments cited: Holborn Studios Ltd v The Council of the London Borough of Hackney [2017] EWHC 2823 (Admin); Braintree DC v SSCLG, Greyread Ltd & Granville Developments Ltd [2018] EWCA Civ 610; City and Country Bramshill Ltd v SSHLG and others [2021] EWCA Civ 320

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.