®Planning appeal decision
Cherry Tree Farm, Grove Road, Faversham, Kent, ME13 9RN
Change of use of agricultural land and conversion of a former poultry shed to form a single residential dwelling, to include associated external alterations, landscape, parking and ecological enhancements
- Authority
- Swale Borough Council
- Appeal type
- minor · Planning Appeal
- Procedure
- Written Representations
- Development
- residential · Change of use
- Inspector
- Pattison B
Main issues, as the Inspector framed them
- The effect of the proposal on employment provision and community facilities within the area
- The effect of the proposal on the character and appearance of the landscape character of the Perrywood Hills and Dry Valleys character area and the Kent Downs National Landscape (KDNL)
- Whether or not the site would be suitable for a residential development given its location outside a built-up area
- The effect of the proposal on the best and most versatile agricultural land
What decided it
The Council's inability to demonstrate a five-year supply of deliverable housing sites, combined with the building's demonstrated unsuitability for employment use and the proposal's compliance with the NPPF exception for reusing redundant buildings in the countryside, justified allowing the appeal.
The significant housing need arising from the Council's lack of five-year housing supply outweighed the loss of best and most versatile agricultural land and the isolated location, particularly given the reuse of an existing redundant building and the enhancement of its landscape setting.
Framework references: 11, 84, 189
Plan policies cited: Policy DM3, Policy DM14, Policy ST1, Policy ST3, Policy CP3, Policy DM24, Policy DM31
Judgments cited: Braintree DC v Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, Greyread Ltd & Granville Developments Ltd [2018] EWCA Civ 610
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.