Land to rear of Greenland Cottage, High Hoyland Lane, High Hoyland, BARNSLEY, S75 4AZ

Main issues, as the Inspector framed them

• the effect of the proposal on the character and appearance of the area, including the effect of the proposal on trees
• whether the appeal site is an appropriate location for residential development having regard to local and national planning policy and the accessibility of services and facilities
• whether the proposal would be inappropriate development in the Green Belt having regard to local and national planning policy
• the effect of the proposal on the openness of the Green Belt
• whether any harm by reason of inappropriateness, and any other harm, would be clearly outweighed by other considerations, so as to amount to the very special circumstances required to justify the proposal

What decided it

The significant weight attributed to the harm to the character and appearance of the area (poor design and pressure on a retained tree) was found to significantly and demonstrably outweigh the benefits of the scheme.

the adverse impacts on the character and appearance of the area significantly and demonstrably outweighed the benefits (including housing delivery, self-build provision and sustainability), so the presumption in favour of sustainable development did not apply and the proposal conflicted with the development plan as a whole