Stampwell Farm, Oxford Road, Jordans, Buckinghamshire, HP9 2DX

Main issues, as the Inspector framed them

• Whether the MCU is inappropriate development within the Green Belt (GB) having regard to the effect on the openness and purposes of including land in the GB and, as necessary, sustainable development principles and the effect on the setting of designated heritage assets.
• The suitability of the vehicular access from Oxford Road.
• Any support provided to the rural economy.
• If the MCU constitutes inappropriate development, whether the harm by reason of inappropriateness, and any other harm, is clearly outweighed by other considerations, and so amounts to the very special circumstances required to justify the proposal ("the GB balance").

What decided it

The worship use failed criteria b and c of paragraph 155 (no demonstrable unmet need and an unsustainable location for non-car access) and so remained inappropriate Green Belt development without very special circumstances, whereas the coffee bean processing use in an existing building was not inappropriate development.

The private benefit of the rural/agricultural link to the church's worship did not clearly outweigh the substantial harm from inappropriate Green Belt development and the harm arising from poor transport accessibility, so the worship use was refused, while the coffee bean processing use, complying with the development plan, was permitted.