Land South of Burford Road, Minster Lovell, Oxfordshire, OX29 0BB

Main issues, as the Inspector framed them

• Whether the Council can demonstrate a five year supply of housing land
• The effect of the proposed development on the character and appearance of the area
• Whether the scale and location of the proposed development is appropriate in principle in terms of the policy approach to housing development in Minster Lovell and accessibility to services and facilities
• The effect of the proposed development on flood risk and drainage
• Whether the proposed development would make adequate provision towards local infrastructure requirements, affordable and self-build housing needs and biodiversity net gain
• Whether the policies which are most important for determining the application are out of date due to a lack of a five year supply of housing land or any other reason and if so, would any adverse impacts of the proposed development significantly and demonstrably outweigh the benefits

What decided it

The Council's inability to demonstrate a five year housing land supply engaged the tilted balance under NPPF paragraph 11(d)ii, and the substantial housing benefits were found to outweigh the limited landscape harm and development plan conflict.

The limited, localised landscape harm and conflict with the development plan as a whole did not significantly and demonstrably outweigh the substantial benefits of housing delivery (including affordable and self-build housing) and moderate sustainability/economic benefits, so the presumption in favour of sustainable development applied and permission was granted.