®Planning appeal decision
1 Hill Road, Farnham, GU9 0QJ
Planning appeal 3376815 at 1 Hill Road, Farnham, GU9 0QJ (Waverley Borough Council) was dismissed on 20 April 2026 by Inspector Gardner L, by written representations. The main issue, as the Inspector framed it: the effect of the proposal on the character and appearance of the area.
erection of a two storey dwelling and associated works including demolition of single storey element to 1 Hill Road
- Authority
- Waverley Borough Council
- Appeal type
- minor · Planning Appeal
- Procedure
- Written Representations
- Development
- residential · Minor Dwellings
- Inspector
- Gardner L
- Postcode
- GU9 0QJ
Main issues, as the Inspector framed them
- the effect of the proposal on the character and appearance of the area
- whether the proposal meets the definition of a self-build dwelling and therefore the requirements of the BNG exemption
- the effect of the proposal on the living conditions of neighbouring occupiers, in particular 1 and 4 Hill Road, having regard to natural light, outlook and privacy
What decided it
The proposal's failure to qualify as a self-build dwelling exempt from mandatory biodiversity net gain, combined with significant harm to character and appearance, meant the adverse impacts significantly and demonstrably outweighed the benefits of housing delivery.
The moderate benefits from housing delivery and economic benefits were significantly and demonstrably outweighed by the significant harm to character and appearance and the heavy weighting against the proposal's failure to meet the statutory biodiversity net gain framework.
What the Inspector cited
- Development plan policies
- Policy TD1 of the Waverley Borough Local Plan Part 1 (2018)Policy NE1 of the Waverley Borough Local Plan Part 1 (2018)Policy CC2 of the Waverley Borough Local Plan Part 1 (2018)Policy DM1 of the Waverley Borough Local Plan Part 2 (2023)Policy DM4 of the Waverley Borough Local Plan Part 2 (2023)Policy DM5 of the Waverley Borough Local Plan Part 2 (2023)
- 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
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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.