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Allowed5 February 20253351426

St Benedicts Lower School, St Andrews Street South, Bury Road, Bury St Edmunds, IP33 3PH

Planning appeal 3351426 at St Benedicts Lower School, St Andrews Street South, Bury Road, Bury St Edmunds, IP33 3PH (West Suffolk) was allowed on 5 February 2025 by Inspector Bowyer J, following a hearing. The main issue, as the Inspector framed it: the effect of the proposal on the safety and convenience of pedestrians, cyclists and other highway users.

change of use from school site to public access car park for 269 cars with new vehicular access and exit from Parkway

Authority
West Suffolk
Appeal type
minor · Planning Appeal
Procedure
Hearing
Development
other · Change of use
Inspector
Bowyer J
Postcode
IP33 3PH

Main issues, as the Inspector framed them

  • the effect of the proposal on the safety and convenience of pedestrians, cyclists and other highway users
  • the effect of the proposal on the provision of recreational open space

What decided it

The Inspector found no unacceptable harm to highway safety or to the provision of recreational open space, with material considerations, including the emerging Local Plan's removal of the open space designation, outweighing conflict with detailed development plan policies.

material considerations, including adequate replacement recreational provision, the emerging Local Plan's removal of the open space designation, and economic benefits, outweighed the failure to comply with the detailed requirements of Policy DM42 of the DMP and Policy LP33 of the emerging WSLP

What the Inspector cited

Development plan policies
Policy DM1Policy DM2Policy DM35Policy DM42Policy DM46Policy CS7Policy LP33

How the Inspector dealt with each one is set out in the app, in order: the development plan, national policy, housing land supply, other considerations and the planning balance, beside the letter.

See how each was applied

The decision letter

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More decisions in West Suffolk

The authority’s record since 2016 · every decision in 2025

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The main issues, what decided it, the planning balance and the policies and judgments listed as cited are read from the published letter by Town Planner Pro and are our summary, not the Inspector’s words; the letter itself is the record. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Research, not advice.

In the app this decision sits on the map beside every appeal around it, with its letter to read and the main issues, policies and judgments cited picked out.