Cygnet Lodge, Worcester Road, Hanley Swan, WR8 0EA

Permission in Principle for the proposed erection of up to 4 no. self or custom build dwellings

Authority: Malvern Hills
Appeal type: Planning
Procedure: Written
Development: residential
Postcode: WR8 0EA

Main issues, as the Inspector framed them

whether the site is suitable for residential development, in terms of its location, land use and amount, with particular regard to: (a) Development plan policies concerning the location of development and accessibility; and (b) the character and appearance of the area

What decided it

The site's location in open countryside at distance from the settlement boundary, combined with poor accessibility for all users and harm to rural character, conflicts with the development plan and cannot be justified by the modest housing benefits.

The benefits of delivering 4 self-build dwellings were outweighed by significant harm to the Council's development strategy for location and accessibility and significant harm to the character of the surrounding area, with the Council able to demonstrate a 5-year housing land supply.

Framework references: 11, 78

Plan policies cited: Policy SWDPR 02, Policy SWDPR 03, Policy SWDPR 06, Policy RE2 of the HCPNDP, Policy MnGr4 of the HCPNDP

Judgments cited: Bramshill v SSHCLG [2021] EWCA Civ. 320; Braintree District Council v SSHCLG [2018] EWCA Civ.610

Read the decision letter on the Inspectorate’s site

The main issues and the deciding factor are read from the published letter by Town Planner Pro; the letter itself is the record. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Research, not advice.

What an account adds

Draw a red line around your site and the appraisal follows.

Heritage. Listed buildings by grade and distance, conservation areas, scheduled monuments, registered parks and gardens, heritage at risk.
Landscape and environment. Green belt, national parks and national landscapes, SSSIs, ancient woodland, SPA, SAC and Ramsar sites, nutrient catchments.
Flooding. Flood zones 2 and 3, surface water, and both again with climate change.
Transport. The 800 metre station catchment and service frequency, bus stops with their weekday frequency, the cycle network, and the Framework’s transport tests measured for the site.

Then the development plan position, the housing land supply as an Inspector last accepted it, and every appeal decided around the site with its letter.

Every English appeal since 2016, with the letter behind it wherever the Inspectorate published one. Searched by meaning as well as by words, with the key case law counted live across the letters.

Casework that chases the deadlines. Applications, appeals and conditions with their statutory dates.

The judgement stays yours. The tool gathers the material and dates it.