®Planning appeal decision
Land Adjacent to 21 High Street, Walkern, Stevenage, SG2 7PA
Planning appeal 3374781 at Land Adjacent to 21 High Street, Walkern, Stevenage, SG2 7PA (East Hertfordshire District Council) was dismissed on 30 January 2026 by Inspector Wallace J, by written representations. The main issue, as the Inspector framed it: the effect of the proposal on the character and appearance of the area including whether it would i) preserve the settings of the nearby listed buildings and ii) preserve or enhance the character or appearance of the Walkern Conservation Area.
Erection of two detached self-build dwellings with parking and creation of a new vehicular access way
- Authority
- East Hertfordshire District Council
- Appeal type
- minor · Planning Appeal
- Procedure
- Written Representations
- Development
- residential · Minor Dwellings
- Inspector
- Wallace J
- Postcode
- SG2 7PA
Main issues, as the Inspector framed them
- the effect of the proposal on the character and appearance of the area including whether it would i) preserve the settings of the nearby listed buildings and ii) preserve or enhance the character or appearance of the Walkern Conservation Area
- the effect of the proposal on highway safety
- the effect of the proposal on protected species
- whether the proposal would make appropriate provision for biodiversity net gain
What decided it
The heritage harm to the Conservation Area and the listed Church setting, which carried considerable weight and was not outweighed by the limited public benefits of two additional dwellings, combined with the unresolvable highway safety concerns regarding visibility splays and the failure to meet biodiversity net gain requirements.
The benefits of housing delivery and associated economic benefits were outweighed by the less than substantial harm to the significance of the Conservation Area and the listed Church, which carried considerable importance and weight under NPPF paragraphs 212-215, and by the unacceptable highway safety effects and failure to meet biodiversity net gain requirements.
What the Inspector cited
- Development plan policies
- EHDP Policy GBR2EHDP Policy VILL1EHDP Policy DES4EHDP Policy HA1EHDP Policy HA4EHDP Policy HA7EHDP Policy TRA2EHDP Policy NE3WNP Policy 3WNP Policy 14
- National Planning Policy Framework
- Paragraph 11Paragraph 38Paragraph 99Paragraph 187Paragraph 212Paragraph 213Paragraph 215
- Judgments
- Holborn Studios Ltd v The Council of the London Borough of Hackney [2017] EWHC 2823 (Admin)
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 appliedThe decision letter
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What an account adds to this decision
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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.