®Planning appeal decision
Walden, Common Hill, Medstead, Hampshire, GU34 5LZ
Planning appeal 6001958 at Walden, Common Hill, Medstead, Hampshire, GU34 5LZ (East Hampshire District Council) was dismissed on 1 April 2026 by Inspector Nicholls H, by written representations. The main issue, as the Inspector framed it: whether the location of the development would accord with development plan policies in terms of access to facilities and minimising car dependency.
erection of two self-build dwellinghouses
- Authority
- East Hampshire District Council
- Appeal type
- minor · Planning Appeal
- Procedure
- Written Representations
- Development
- residential · Minor Dwellings
- Inspector
- Nicholls H
- Postcode
- GU34 5LZ
Main issues, as the Inspector framed them
- whether the location of the development would accord with development plan policies in terms of access to facilities and minimising car dependency
- the effects of the proposal on the character and appearance of the area
- the effects of the proposal on the River Itchen Special Area of Conservation
What decided it
The unmitigated adverse effects on the integrity of the River Itchen Special Area of Conservation and downstream protected sites, which cannot be secured by condition alone and require a planning obligation, provide a strong reason for refusal that outweighs the benefits of housing delivery in the context of housing land supply shortfall.
The modest benefits of two dwellings towards housing supply, economic benefits from construction, and contribution to self-build housing were significantly and demonstrably outweighed by the collective harms of locational conflict with sustainability policies, adverse effects on character and appearance, and unmitigated harm to protected sites; the presumption in favour of sustainable development did not apply.
What the Inspector cited
- Development plan policies
- Policy 1 of the Medstead and Four Marks Neighbourhood PlanJCS Policy CP2JCS Policy CP10JCS Policy CP14JCS Policy CP19saved policy H14 of the East Hampshire District Local Plan: Second Review (2006)JCS Policy CP20JCS Policy CP29JCS Policy CP21JCS Policy CP22
- 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 East Hampshire District Council
The authority’s record since 2016 · every decision in 2026
- Dismissed13 July 20266005917Land West of School Lane, Bentley, Farnham, Bentley, GU10 5JP
- Dismissed14 April 20266002212Land Adjacent To Riverside,, Bordon, GU35 0AD
- Allowed11 February 20263367627Avalon House Winchester Road, Four Marks, Alton, GU34 5JB
- Dismissed28 January 20263372333Land to the North West of the Pines, Bighton Hill, Ropley , Hampshire, SO24 9SQ
- Allowed15 December 20253363005Tristan Farm Churt Road, Headley, Bordon, GU35 8SR
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.