1 French Gardens, Cobham, Surrey, KT11 2AJ

a terrace of 3 two-storey houses with rooms in the roof space, dormer windows, parking and associated landscaping following demolition of existing dwelling and outbuildings

Authority: Elmbridge Borough Council
Appeal type: minor · Planning Appeal
Procedure: Written Representations
Development: residential · Minor Dwellings
Inspector: Hickey A

Main issues, as the Inspector framed them

the effect of the proposal on the character and appearance of the area
whether or not the proposal would be satisfactory in respect of housing mix and density

What decided it

The unacceptable harm to character and appearance combined with the failure to provide an appropriate housing mix for identified local needs meant the proposal conflicted with the development plan as a whole with no material considerations to indicate otherwise.

The social and economic benefits of boosting local housing stock and providing family-sized energy-efficient homes did not outweigh the identified harms to character and appearance and the mismatch with housing mix needs.

Framework references: 128

Plan policies cited: Policy CS10, Policy CS17, Policy CS19, Policy DM2

Judgments cited: Bernard Wheatcroft Ltd v SSE [JPL 1982 P37]; Holborn Studios Ltd v The Council of the London Borough of Hackney [2017] EWHC 2823 (Admin)

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.