Rose Bower, Stafford Road, Lichfield, Staffordshire, WS13 8HZ

change of use of domestic outbuilding to dwellinghouse

Authority: Lichfield District Council
Appeal type: minor · Planning Appeal
Procedure: Written Representations
Development: residential · Change of use
Inspector: Sibley G

Main issues, as the Inspector framed them

whether the proposed development would be inappropriate development in the Green Belt having regard to the National Planning Policy Framework and local policies
the effect of the proposal on highway safety and whether the site is in a suitable location for the proposed use with regard to access to services and facilities

What decided it

The proposal fails to provide safe and suitable access for all users and is not in a suitable location for the proposed use, resulting in unacceptable highway safety impacts that conflict with development plan policies and outweigh the modest benefits of delivering one dwelling.

The modest benefits of housing delivery, economic support, efficient reuse of land, and sustainability enhancements (electric vehicle charging and solar panels) were outweighed by the significant harm from unsafe pedestrian and cycling access and unsuitability of location for the proposed residential use.

Framework references: 143, 154

Plan policies cited: Policy NR2, Policy CP13, Core Policy 1, Core Policy 3, Core Policy 6, Rural Policy 1, Rural Policy 2

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.