Land Between Merton Hotel and St Hughs House , Stanley Road, Bootle, L13 5TS

Planning appeal 3362646 at Land Between Merton Hotel and St Hughs House , Stanley Road, Bootle, L13 5TS (Sefton Metropolitan Borough Council) was allowed on 14 July 2025 by Inspector Cleary D, by written representations. The main issue, as the Inspector framed it: The effect of varying the conditions on the regeneration objectives for the area.

Continuation of use of the land as a car boot sale venue on Sundays and occasional Bank Holiday Mondays

Authority: Sefton Metropolitan Borough Council
Appeal type: minor · Planning Appeal
Procedure: Written Representations
Development: retail · Other minor developments
Inspector: Cleary D

Main issues, as the Inspector framed them

The effect of varying the conditions on the regeneration objectives for the area

What decided it

The uncertainty of timescales for the emerging Bootle Area Action Plan, masterplan, and parking assessment meant that a one-year temporary consent would be unreasonably restrictive and result in the site becoming vacant, whereas a three-year consent would allow time for redevelopment plans to advance without undermining regeneration objectives.

The temporary continuation of the beneficial car boot sales use for three years was balanced against the Council's regeneration objectives, with the balance tipping in favour of allowing the temporary use because the necessary planning framework documents were not yet finalised and a one-year period would be unreasonably restrictive.

What the Inspector cited

Development plan policies: Policy ED6Policy ED4Policy BAAP5

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

Town Planner Pro holds this letter. The Appeals plan opens it and every other letter we hold, all of them searchable, with the main issues and what decided each case picked out. We do not show letters on the free site because they carry people’s names and addresses.

Appeals plan, £15 a month

With an account

What an account adds to this decision

65 other decided appeals within two kilometres of this site. In the app every dot opens its decision, and its letter wherever one was published, and you can draw your own site to see what has been decided around it.AllowedDismissedSplitThis decision

An appeal decision in the app, with the main issues, policies and judgments cited picked out beside the letter — Every letter, there to read. We pick out the main issues, the policies and the judgments cited, so you can work through the letter faster.

Searching the full text of appeal decision letters in the app — Search inside every letter. By words or by meaning, filtered by authority, outcome, appeal type and procedure, with every locatable decision on the map and the Inspector named on each.

Start your free trial

More decisions in Sefton

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

Allowed29 October 20266012707
144 Park Lane, Netherton, L30 1RW
Dismissed23 September 20266008723
Land to the Rear of Abbey Gardens, Southport Road, Lydiate, L31 4EQ
Dismissed9 September 20266009026
64 Thornton Road, Bootle, L20 5AR
Dismissed7 September 20266010758
14 Blundell Drive, Birkdale, PR8 4RG
Dismissed7 September 20266008359
9 Green Lane, Formby, L37 7DJ

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.