®Planning appeal decision
School Lane Farm School Lane, Iwade, SITTINGBOURNE, ME9 8SG
the conversion of a redundant agricultural building to one dwelling
- Authority
- Swale Borough Council
- Appeal type
- minor · Planning Appeal
- Procedure
- Written Representations
- Development
- residential · Minor Dwellings
- Inspector
- Sylvester G
Main issues, as the Inspector framed them
- The effect of the proposal on employment provision and community facilities within the area
- The effect of the proposed dwelling on the character and appearance of the area
- Whether the proposed dwelling would be in an appropriate location for new housing with particular regard to the Council's settlement strategy and the accessibility of services and facilities
- Whether the proposed development would affect the integrity of the SPAs as protected European sites of nature conservation importance
What decided it
The Council's inability to demonstrate a 5-year housing land supply triggered the tilted balance under Framework paragraph 11(d), and the benefits of housing delivery and sustainable location outweighed the modest conflict with LP Policies DM3 and ST1.
The negative effect on rural economy and community vitality (moderate weight against) was outweighed by the proposal's consistency with national policy, appropriate location, accessibility to services, contribution to housing supply in a context of shortfall, and social and economic benefits (collectively moderate to strong weight in favour), applying the presumption in favour of sustainable development.
Framework references: 11, 60, 70, 82, 83, 84, 135, 180
Plan policies cited: Policy ST1, Policy ST3, Policy CP3, Policy CP4, Policy CP7, Policy DM3, Policy DM14, Policy DM28
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.