Land North of Foxgloves, Church Street, West Stour, Gillingham, Dorset, SP8 5RB

Main issues, as the Inspector framed them

• whether the appeal site is an appropriate location for the proposed development, with particular regard to the local development strategy and access to services and facilities
• the effect of the proposed development on the character and appearance of the area

What decided it

The proposal would cause significant harm to the character and appearance of the area by appearing intrusive and lacking integration with the existing street scene, and would conflict with the spatial strategy by locating a single dwelling in an unsustainable location with heavy reliance on motor vehicles, and these harms are not outweighed by the limited housing benefits even under the tilted balance.

The limited benefits of housing supply and self-build housing for a local resident, together with economic benefits from construction and occupation, were significantly and demonstrably outweighed by the harm to character and appearance and the conflict with the development plan's spatial strategy promoting sustainable locations, even when assessed against the Framework policies under the tilted balance.