3 & 4 Cooks Hall Cottages, Cooks Hall Road, West Bergholt, Colchester, Essex, CO6 3EY

Planning appeal 3365686 at 3 & 4 Cooks Hall Cottages, Cooks Hall Road, West Bergholt, Colchester, Essex, CO6 3EY (Colchester Borough Council) was dismissed on 24 July 2025 by Inspector Fleming L, by written representations. The main issue, as the Inspector framed it: Whether the appeal site is a sustainable location for the proposal having particular regard to the need for tourism development, whether it would involve the development of previously developed land and its effect on the character and appearance of the area.

repair and renovate cottages on a like-for-like basis, as holiday accommodation (partly retrospective)

Authority: Colchester Borough Council
Appeal type: minor · Planning Appeal
Procedure: Written Representations
Development: leisure-sport · Minor retail and services
Inspector: Fleming L
Postcode: CO6 3EY

Main issues, as the Inspector framed them

Whether the appeal site is a sustainable location for the proposal having particular regard to the need for tourism development, whether it would involve the development of previously developed land and its effect on the character and appearance of the area

What decided it

The harm to the rural character and appearance of the area caused by urbanisation of the site, combined with dependence on private motorised transport and insufficient evidence of tourism need, outweighed the benefits of redeveloping previously developed land.

What the Inspector cited

Development plan policies: Policy DM5Policy OV2Policy ENV1Policy PP9
National Planning Policy Framework: Paragraph 84Paragraph 88Paragraph 89Paragraph 124

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.

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The decision letter

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More decisions in Colchester City Council

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

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Allowed24 July 20253360676
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Dismissed13 May 20253353458
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Dismissed11 February 20253345659
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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.