®Planning appeal decision
Spindlewood Country Holiday Park, Rock Lane, Hastings, TN35 4JN
Planning appeal 3375929 at Spindlewood Country Holiday Park, Rock Lane, Hastings, TN35 4JN (Hastings Borough Council) was dismissed on 14 April 2026 by Inspector Satheesan R, following a hearing. The main issue, as the Inspector framed it: The main issue is whether the Council's refusal to grant the LDC for the use of land as a caravan site for the siting of static caravans for use as a main place of residence between 1st March and 30th November in each year was well founded.
for the use of land as a caravan site for the siting of static caravans for use as a main place of residence between 1st March and 30th November in each year
- Authority
- Hastings Borough Council
- Appeal type
- ldc · Lawful Development Certificate
- Procedure
- Hearing
- Development
- caravan-gypsy · Other Major Developments
- Inspector
- Satheesan R
- Postcode
- TN35 4JN
Main issues, as the Inspector framed them
- The main issue is whether the Council's refusal to grant the LDC for the use of land as a caravan site for the siting of static caravans for use as a main place of residence between 1st March and 30th November in each year was well founded
- the proper interpretation of the 1985 appeal and the subsequent s73 2002 permission which varied the seasonal occupancy condition from 8 to 9 months
- whether the proposed use would represent a material change of use (MCU) from the present lawful use
What decided it
The Inspector found that the proposed year-round residential occupation of the static caravans would constitute a material change of use from the lawful holiday use authorised by the 1985 appeal and 2002 permission, meaning the certificate of lawful use could not be granted.
What the Inspector cited
- Judgments
- SSTLG&R v Waltham Forest London Borough Council; Trump International Golf Club Scotland Ltd v the Scottish Ministers [2015] UKSC 74; I’m Your Man Ltd. V Secretary of State for the Environment (1999) 77 P. & C.R. 251.; R (Altunkaynak) v Northamptonshire Magistrates’ Court [2012] EWHC174 (Admin).; Cotswold Grange Country Park v Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government [2014] EWHC 1138 (Admin); Winchester City Council v Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government [2015] EWCA Civ 563; Hertfordshire CC v SSCLG & Metal and Waste Recycling Ltd [2012] EWCA Civ 1473; Barton Park Estates Ltd. V Secretary of State [2022] EWCA Civ 833
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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More decisions in Hastings
The authority’s record since 2016 · every decision in 2026
- Dismissed28 August 20266004450Pavement O/S 33 Havelock Road, Hastings, TN34 1BE
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- Dismissed8 July 20266002906The Millers Arms, 38 Winchelsea Road, Hastings, TN35 4JU
- Dismissed19 June 2026600525088 Harley Shute Road, St Leonards-on-Sea, TN38 8BU
- Dismissed25 March 2026600300310 Linton Crescent, Hastings, East Sussex, TN34 1TJ
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.