Land at Warwickshire Police Headquarters, Woodcote Lane, Leek Wootton, Warwick, Warwickshire, CV35 7QA

for up to 83no. dwellings (including affordable housing), access, internal roads and footpaths, public open space, landscaping, drainage and other associated works and infrastructure (all matters of detail reserved except for the vehicular access to the site)

Authority: Warwick District Council
Appeal type: major · Planning Appeal
Procedure: Inquiry
Development: residential · Major dwellings
Inspector: Lee S

Main issues, as the Inspector framed them

The principle of development and compliance with the development plan
The effect of the development on the settings of Woodcote House and the Leek Wootton Conservation Area (LWCA) and the effect on the non-designated locally important park and garden
The effect of the development on highway safety and the efficient operation of the transport network
Whether there are any material considerations that would outweigh any conflict with the development plan

What decided it

The public benefits of the scheme, principally housing delivery (including 40% affordable housing) and support for Leek Wootton's growth village status, were found to outweigh the less than substantial heritage harm and the moderately-weighted conflict with the site allocation policy, within a tilted balance triggered by the Council's inability to demonstrate a five-year housing land supply.

The significant benefits of housing delivery, including affordable housing and economic benefits, outweighed the less than substantial heritage harm to Woodcote House's setting, the Conservation Area and the non-designated heritage asset, and outweighed the moderately-weighted conflict with Policy DS22 and LWNP policies LW4/LW5, such that the adverse impacts did not significantly and demonstrably outweigh the benefits under the tilted balance.

Framework references: 11, 49, 57, 77, 83, 115, 116, 186, 205, 208, 209, 214

Plan policies cited: Policy DS22, Policy DS11, Policy DS4, Policy DS4(e), Policy H1, Policy H10, Policy HE1, Policy HE3, Policy TR1, Policy TR2, Policy TR3, Policy H2, Policy H4, Policy HS1, Policy HS6, Policy DM1, Policy NZC1, Policy NZC2A-C, Policy NZC3, Policy NDZ1, Policy LW4, Policy LW5, Policy LW10, Policy LW11

Judgments cited: Holborn Studios Ltd vs the Council of the London Borough of Hackney [2017] EWHC 2823 (Admin); University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust v Harborough District Council v Leicestershire County Council 2023 EWHC 263 (Admin)

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.