®Planning appeal decision
Land Formerly Known As The Square Church , Enstone, Oxfordshire , OX7 4NL
Planning appeal 3331704 at Land Formerly Known As The Square Church , Enstone, Oxfordshire , OX7 4NL (West Oxfordshire District Council) was allowed on 13 August 2024 by Inspector Pickernell E, by written representations. The main issue, as the Inspector framed it: whether the appeal site is an appropriate location for a dwelling, having regard to local planning policies.
Erection of a single family dwelling of three bedrooms and a fourth bedroom/home office, three bath/shower rooms, reception rooms (kitchen/dining/living and sitting room), supporting storage and utility areas (202 sq m net internal floor area), an outbuilding (c. 40 sq m footprint), designed to Passivhaus carbon neutral standards with mechanical ventilation and heat recovery and renewable technologies, retaining existing trees including four subject to TPO.
- Authority
- West Oxfordshire District Council
- Appeal type
- minor · Planning Appeal
- Procedure
- Written Representations
- Development
- residential · Minor Dwellings
- Inspector
- Pickernell E
- Postcode
- OX7 4NL
Main issues, as the Inspector framed them
- whether the appeal site is an appropriate location for a dwelling, having regard to local planning policies
- the effect of the development on the character and appearance of the area
- the effect of the development on the setting of listed buildings
- whether any harm identified, including conflict with the development plan, would be outweighed by other considerations
What decided it
The Council's failure to meet its statutory duty under the Self Build and Custom Housebuilding Act 2015 to grant suitable planning permissions to meet identified demand, and the proposal's valuable contribution towards meeting this shortfall, outweighed the conflict with the spatial strategy of the development plan.
The significant weight attached to the conflict with the local plan spatial strategy was outweighed by the significant weight given to the unmet self-build and custom housebuilding demand and the moderate weight of other identified benefits including housing provision, economic benefits and renewable energy credentials.
What the Inspector cited
- Development plan policies
- Policy OS2Policy H2Policy H5Policy OS4Policy EH13Policy EH11Policy OS3
- National Planning Policy Framework
- Paragraph 11Paragraph 56Paragraph 57Paragraph 83
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 appliedThe decision letter
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With an account
What an account adds to this decision
More decisions in West Oxfordshire
The authority’s record since 2016 · every decision in 2024
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- Allowed9 September 20266007705Forge Garage, Church Road, Churchill, OX7 6NJ
- Dismissed30 June 20266005283Land West of The Nursery, 6 Oxford Road, Eynsham, OX29 4HG
- Dismissed5 May 20266002714Land at Main Road, Alvescot, West Oxfordshire, OX18 2PU
- Dismissed28 April 20266001930Land at Drive to Butlers Farm Road, Alvescot, Alvescot, Oxfordshire, OX18 2PU
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.