Annies Garden, Plot 2 The Meadows, Headcorn, TN27 9LG

change of use of land to provide a single pitch, comprising a static home and touring caravan pitch, for residential use by Gypsies or Travellers within an existing Gypsy and Traveller site (part retrospective). Appeal B:

Authority: Maidstone Borough Council
Appeal type: minor · Planning Appeal
Procedure: Written Representations
Development: caravan-gypsy · Change of use
Inspector: Walker R

Main issues, as the Inspector framed them

The effect of the proposals on the character and appearance of the area

What decided it

The Council's inability to demonstrate a five-year supply of gypsy and traveller pitches, combined with the contribution the appeal sites would make to addressing identified accommodation needs, outweighed the significant harm to character and appearance when assessed against the Framework as a whole.

The significant harm to character and appearance was outweighed by the benefits of addressing the five-year supply shortfall for gypsy and traveller accommodation, applying the presumption in favour of sustainable development under paragraph 11(d) of the Framework

Framework references: 11, 26, 28, 135, 187

Plan policies cited: LPRHOU8, LPRSP9, LPRQD4, HNP1, HNP2, HNP5

Read the decision letter on the Inspectorate’s site

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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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