Land at Oakley Farm, Penwood Road, Wash Water, Newbury, Berkshire, RG20 0LR

the erection of a minimum of 1 no. and a maximum of 2 no. residential dwellings

Authority: Basingstoke and Deane Borough Council
Appeal type: minor · Planning Appeal
Procedure: Written Representations
Development: residential · Minor Dwellings
Inspector: Catcheside E

Main issues, as the Inspector framed them

Whether the site is suitable for residential development, having regard to its location and the proposed land use, with particular consideration to (a) the spatial strategy set out in the development plan, and (b) the effect of the development on the character and appearance of the area

What decided it

The harm to the character and appearance of the area through encroachment of built form into open countryside, combined with conflict with the spatial strategy, could not be outweighed by the modest benefits of delivering 1-2 dwellings.

The modest social and economic benefits of delivering 1-2 dwellings (moderate cumulative weight) were significantly and demonstrably outweighed by the harm to character and appearance and conflict with spatial strategy policies, even applying the tilted balance under paragraph 11(d) of the Framework.

Framework references: 11, 12, 15, 77, 226

Plan policies cited: Policy SS1, Policy SS6, Policy EM1, Policy EM10, Policy SD1

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.