Land Between 4 and 14 Middlemoor Road, Whittlesford , Cambridge , Cambridgeshire, CB22 4PB

a 1.5 storey single dwelling with associated garden space, access, parking and associated infrastructure works

Authority: South Cambridgeshire District Council
Appeal type: minor · Planning Appeal
Procedure: Written Representations
Development: residential · Minor Dwellings
Inspector: Reed D

Main issues, as the Inspector framed them

Whether the proposal would be inappropriate development in the Green Belt having regard to the NPPF and development plan policy
The effect of the proposal on the openness of the Green Belt
The effect of the proposal on the character and appearance of the area
The effect of the proposal on great crested newts
If the proposal would be 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 necessary to justify it

What decided it

The proposal fails to meet criterion (b) of NPPF paragraph 155 as the Council can demonstrate a five-year housing land supply, meaning it constitutes inappropriate development in the Green Belt which cannot be justified by the limited other considerations advanced.

The substantial harm to the Green Belt by reason of inappropriateness, together with significant reduction in openness and harm to character and appearance, was not clearly outweighed by the limited benefits of housing delivery and site reuse, so very special circumstances do not exist.

Framework references: 154, 155, 143, 153

Plan policies cited: Policy S/4, Policy S/12, Policy S/7, Policy HQ/1, Policy NH/4

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.