Waterman Quarter Cottage, Waterman Quarters, Headcorn, Kent, TN27 9JJ

application for part retrospective planning permission for the change of use of outbuilding to provide a holiday let, including outdoor shower and compost toilet, as well as the installation of drainage system”

Authority: Maidstone Borough Council
Appeal type: minor · Planning Appeal
Procedure: Written Representations
Development: leisure-sport · Change of use
Inspector: Whitfield H

Main issues, as the Inspector framed them

whether the site is a suitable location for the development having regard to flood risk
the effect of the development on ecology

What decided it

The proposal fails to satisfy the sequential test for flood risk and fails to demonstrate that the compost toilet would not adversely affect protected species and the Local Wildlife Site, contrary to the Framework and development plan policies.

Framework references: 175, 176, 14

Plan policies cited: LPRSP9, LPRSP14A, LPRSP15, LPRQD4

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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.
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