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Dismissed23 March 20263374232

Land Adjacent to The Orchard, Braze Lane, Benson, OX10 6JB

Planning appeal 3374232 at Land Adjacent to The Orchard, Braze Lane, Benson, OX10 6JB (South Oxfordshire District Council) was dismissed on 23 March 2026 by Inspector Wilkinson S, following an inquiry. The main issue, as the Inspector framed it: Housing land supply with particular regard to specialist older persons housing.

erection of 40 no. age-restricted dwellings (Use Class C3) including 40% affordable housing and communal facilities, together with a new access off Braze Lane and pedestrian footway, including parking, landscaping and all enabling and ancillary works

Authority
South Oxfordshire District Council
Appeal type
major · Planning Appeal
Procedure
Inquiry
Development
residential · Major dwellings
Inspector
Wilkinson S
Postcode
OX10 6JB

Main issues, as the Inspector framed them

  • Housing land supply with particular regard to specialist older persons housing
  • The location of the site with reference to national and local policies
  • The effect of the scheme on the landscape character and appearance of the area
  • The design of the scheme with regard to the provision of open space
  • Whether or not the suggested tenure mix would adequately address the district's housing needs

What decided it

The site's poor accessibility to shops, services and public transport for its elderly occupants, combined with landscape and visual harm to the settlement's green wedge, was found to outweigh the benefits of the housing and specialist older persons accommodation proposed.

the significant social and moderate economic benefits of the age-restricted housing were outweighed by the substantial harm arising from the site's poor location for elderly occupants and the landscape/visual harm to the green wedge, such that adverse impacts significantly and demonstrably outweighed the benefits

What the Inspector cited

Development plan policies
STRAT1STRAT2STRAT11STRAT12STRAT13H1H9H11H13TRANS2TRANS4TRANS5NP1NP10NP23NP25NP27NP28NP29NP30ENV1ENV3DES1DES2DES5EP3EP4INF1
National Planning Policy Framework
Paragraph 11Paragraph 14Paragraph 58Paragraph 61Paragraph 63Paragraph 85Paragraph 110Paragraph 117Paragraph 187Paragraph 232
Judgments
Hallam Land Management Ltd vs Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government& Anor {2018} EWCA Civ. 1808 {46&51}

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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The authority’s record since 2016 · every decision in 2026

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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.

In the app this decision sits on the map beside every appeal around it, with its letter to read and the main issues, policies and judgments cited picked out.