Land East of Rhee Spring And Orwell View, Royston Road, Baldock, SG7 6PL

residential development (42 dwellings), access, parking, landscaping and associated works, including provision of an electrical sub-station

Authority: North Hertfordshire District Council
Appeal type: major · Planning Appeal
Procedure: Inquiry
Development: residential · Major dwellings
Inspector: Gilbert J

Main issues, as the Inspector framed them

whether the proposed development would make an appropriate contribution towards affordable housing need

What decided it

The agreed viability evidence showing the scheme could only support two affordable housing units, secured with a viability review mechanism in the S106 agreement, meant the appropriate contribution towards affordable housing need had been made, tipping the planning balance in favour of the scheme.

The significant weight afforded to market and affordable housing delivery and biodiversity net gain outweighed the limited weight given to conflicts with LP Policy T2 and NP Policies E6 and G3, so the adverse impacts did not significantly and demonstrably outweigh the benefits.

Framework references: 59, 64, 66, 11, 58

Plan policies cited: LP Policy BA4, LP Policy HS1, LP Policy HS2, LP Policy HS5, LP Policy SP7, LP Policy SP8, LP Policy T2, NP Policy E1, NP Policy E2, NP Policy E3, NP Policy E4, NP Policy E6, NP Policy G3

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.