®Planning appeal decision
Land To The South Of Playground, Dene View, High Hesleden, County Durham, TS27 4QD
Planning appeal 3375932 at Land To The South Of Playground, Dene View, High Hesleden, County Durham, TS27 4QD (Durham County Council) was dismissed on 4 August 2026 by Inspector Lancaster K, by written representations. The main issue, as the Inspector framed it: Whether the appeal site is in a suitable location for housing, having particular regard to the spatial strategy of the development plan and accessibility to services.
- Authority
- Durham County Council
- Appeal type
- minor · Planning Appeal
- Procedure
- Written Representations
- Development
- residential · Minor Dwellings
- Inspector
- Lancaster K
Main issues, as the Inspector framed them
- Whether the appeal site is in a suitable location for housing, having particular regard to the spatial strategy of the development plan and accessibility to services
- The effect of the proposed development on the character and appearance of the area
What decided it
The adverse impacts of granting planning permission, comprising the unsuitability of the location for housing when assessed against the spatial strategy of the development plan and the significant harm to the character and appearance of the area through encroachment of built development into the countryside, significantly and demonstrably outweigh the benefits of the proposal when assessed against the policies of the Framework taken as a whole.
Paragraph 11(d)(ii) of the Framework applied due to the Council's inability to demonstrate a five-year housing land supply; the modest benefits of delivering one dwelling and limited self-build benefits, attracting moderate weight overall, were significantly and demonstrably outweighed by the substantial weight of adverse impacts comprising unsuitability of location and significant harm to character and appearance.
What the Inspector cited
- Development plan policies
- Policy 6Policy 10Policy 29Policy 39
- National Planning Policy Framework
- Paragraph 11
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
Town Planner Pro holds this letter. The Appeals plan opens it and every other letter we hold, all of them searchable, with the main issues and what decided each case picked out. We do not show letters on the free site because they carry people’s names and addresses.
With an account
What an account adds to this decision
More decisions in Durham County Council
The authority’s record since 2016 · every decision in 2026
- Dismissed11 May 2026600274178, Front Street, Stanhope, DL132XF
- Dismissed20 November 20253367815Land and Buildings South East of Sycamore House, And West of Bondisle Way, Stanhope, Durham, DL13 2YU
- Dismissed21 October 20253364425Land to the East of 33 Campbell Street, Tow Law, Bishop Auckland, DL13 4DX
- Dismissed29 July 2025336430221 Tudhoe Lane, Spennymoor, DL16 6LL
- Dismissed8 July 20253363869Land North of Bamburgh Road, Ferryhill, County Durham, DL17 8QH
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.