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Quashed On Legal Grounds1 November 20243321237

The Loft Part Lane, Swallowfield, Reading, RG7 1TB

Planning appeal 3321237 at The Loft Part Lane, Swallowfield, Reading, RG7 1TB (Wokingham Borough Council) was decided (quashed on legal grounds) on 1 November 2024 by Inspector Whitfield J, following a hearing. The main issue, as the Inspector framed it: whether the development will comply with local and national planning policy which seeks to steer new development away from areas at the highest risk of flooding.

Erection of a single storey building, an open sided building, a further single storey building and formation of hardstanding (Appeals A-C); material change of use of the Land to a mixed use of ancillary residential, business and storage uses (Appeals D-F)

Authority
Wokingham Borough Council
Appeal type
enforcement · Enforcement Notice
Procedure
Hearing
Development
employment-industrial · Change of use
Inspector
Whitfield J
Postcode
RG7 1TB

Main issues, as the Inspector framed them

  • whether the development will comply with local and national planning policy which seeks to steer new development away from areas at the highest risk of flooding
  • the effect of the development on the character and appearance of the area

What decided it

The appellant's failure to demonstrate compliance with the flood risk Sequential Test outweighed the absence of character/appearance harm and the personal benefits relied upon, leading to dismissal of the ground (a) appeal for Appeals A-C.

the significant personal benefit to the occupiers of The Loft was outweighed by the harm arising from non-compliance with flood risk policy, so the development conflicts with the development plan taken as a whole

What the Inspector cited

Development plan policies
Policy CS1Policy CP11Policy CP1Policy CP3Policy CP6Policy CP9Policy CC01Policy CC02Policy CC03Policy TB21Policy CCO2
National Planning Policy Framework
Paragraph 165Paragraph 167Paragraph 168Paragraph 174
Judgments
Sage v SSHCLG & Bromley LBC [2021] EWHC 2885 (Admin)

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 applied

The decision letter

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The authority’s record since 2016 · every decision in 2024

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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.

In the app this decision sits on the map beside every appeal around it, with its letter to read and the main issues, policies and judgments cited picked out.