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Dismissed8 May 20253356397

Bluebell Farm, Commonfield Lane, Barkham, Wokingham, RG40 4PR

Planning appeal 3356397 at Bluebell Farm, Commonfield Lane, Barkham, Wokingham, RG40 4PR (Wokingham Borough Council) was dismissed on 8 May 2025 by Inspector Praine N, following a hearing. The main issue, as the Inspector framed it: The effect of the proposed development on the quality of the environment including trees.

a change of use of the land for stationing of 9no. mobile homes for permanent residential use for people over the age of 55 years

Authority
Wokingham Borough Council
Appeal type
minor · Planning Appeal
Procedure
Hearing
Development
residential · Change of use
Inspector
Praine N
Postcode
RG40 4PR

Main issues, as the Inspector framed them

  • The effect of the proposed development on the quality of the environment including trees
  • The effect of the proposed development on the Thames Basin Heaths Special Protection Area ("SPA")
  • The effect of the proposed development on sustainable transport choices

What decided it

The inability to rule out an adverse effect on the integrity of the Thames Basin Heaths SPA, without any secured mitigation and where a Grampian condition was not appropriate, meant the proposal could not benefit from the presumption in favour of sustainable development and this, combined with harm to the quality of the environment, outweighed the housing benefits.

The very substantial weight attached to the combined harm to the quality of the environment and the unmitigated adverse effect on the SPA was not outweighed by the substantial weight given to the housing benefits, and the proposal was found contrary to the development plan as a whole

What the Inspector cited

Development plan policies
Policy CP1Policy CP2Policy CP3Policy CP6Policy CP7Policy CP8Policy CP11Policy CC03Policy TB21saved Policy NRM6 of the South East Plan 2009Policy SS3Policy SS5
National Planning Policy Framework
Paragraph 11Paragraph 61Paragraph 110Paragraph 195

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 Wokingham Borough Council

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

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  3. Dismissed14 September 20266013132
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  4. Dismissed6 August 20266005646
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  5. Dismissed24 July 20266008194
    44 Proctors Road, Wokingham, RG40 1RP

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.