®Planning appeal decision
246 Swallow Street, IVER, SL0 0HT
without planning permission, the carrying out of operational development comprising the following: a) the erection of three buildings; b) the erection of a fence; c) the creation of hard surfaced areas; and d) the siting of secure storage containers
- Authority
- Buckinghamshire Council - South Bucks Area *
- Appeal type
- enforcement · Enforcement Notice
- Procedure
- Inquiry
- Development
- other · Other Major Developments
- Inspector
- Savage M
Main issues, as the Inspector framed them
- Whether the appeal scheme would be inappropriate development in the Green Belt having regard to the National Planning Policy Framework (December 2024)(the Framework) and any relevant development plan policies
- If the appeal scheme is inappropriate development in the Green Belt, the effect of it on the openness of the Green Belt
- The effect of the appeal scheme on the character and appearance of the area
- The effect of the development on protected species
- Whether the development would deliver biodiversity net gain
- If the development is inappropriate development, whether the harm by reason of inappropriateness, and any other harm, is clearly outweighed by other considerations so as to amount to the very special circumstances required to justify the appeal scheme
What decided it
The appellant failed to demonstrate on the balance of probabilities that the buildings and works were substantially completed before the relevant immunity date, and the identified Green Belt, character and biodiversity harms were not clearly outweighed by other considerations.
The modest harm to Green Belt openness, harm to character and appearance, and harm to protected species/biodiversity were not clearly outweighed by the other considerations advanced (limited/very limited weight), so very special circumstances did not exist.
Framework references: 154, 155, 156, 157, 143, 110, 115
Plan policies cited: Policy GB1, Policy EP3, Policy CP9
Judgments cited: Sage v SSETR & Maidstone BC [2003] UKHL 22; [2003] JPL 1299; Oates v SSCLG [2018] EWCA Civ 2229; Jenson & Anor v Faux [2011] EWCA 423; Gestmin SGPS SA v Credit Suisse (UK) Ltd [2013] EWHC 3560 (Comm); Barrow v Merrett [2021] EWHC 792 (QB)
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.