®Planning appeal decision
Hawthorn Lodge, Chart Hill Road, Chart Sutton, Kent, ME17 3EX
Without planning permission, the material change of use of land to residential for a Gypsy and Traveller family including the stationing of caravans and associated operational works including the laying of hardsurfacing, creation of an entrance by removal of 'Important' Hedgerow and erection of entrance gates and the installation of a septic tank
- Authority
- Maidstone Borough Council
- Appeal type
- enforcement · Enforcement Notice
- Procedure
- Hearing
- Development
- caravan-gypsy · Change of use
- Inspector
- Fagan N
Main issues, as the Inspector framed them
- Accessibility of the site to local services
- Whether the development would dominate the nearest settled community
- The effect of the development on the landscape and rural character of the area
- Its effect on ecology in the area, in particular Great Crested Newts
- The existing level of local provision and the need for traveller sites
- The personal need for a site by the appellant and her family taking account of their personal circumstances, human rights (including the best interests of the child), protected characteristics and the availability (or lack) of alternative accommodation
What decided it
The lack of any alternative site for the appellant and her family combined with the severe shortfall in traveller pitch supply and the best interests of her children outweighed the identified harms.
The harm from the development's contribution to dominating the settled community, landscape harm and possible ecological harm was outweighed by the lack of an alternative site, the huge unmet need for traveller pitches and the best interests of the appellant's children, tipping the balance in favour of granting permanent planning permission.
Plan policies cited: Policy LPRHOU8 (Gypsy, Traveller and Travelling Showpeople Accommodation) of the Maidstone Local Plan Review 2021-2038, Policy LPRSP9 (Development in the Countryside), Policy LPRSP14(A), Policy LPR2P9
Judgments cited: Smith v SSLUHC & Ors [2022] EWCA Civ 1391
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.