®Planning appeal decision
44a Gravel Road, Eastwood, SS9 5AS
Planning appeal 6005104 at 44a Gravel Road, Eastwood, SS9 5AS (Southend-on-Sea Borough Council) was dismissed on 2 June 2026 by Inspector Steven Hartley, by written representations. The main issue, as the Inspector framed it: whether the proposed visitor accommodation would be suitably located when considered against the Southend-on-Sea Development Management Document 2015 policies and other guidance.
the change of use from use class C3 to a sui generis (short term holiday home.)
- Authority
- Southend-on-Sea Borough Council
- Appeal type
- Planning
- Procedure
- Written
- Development
- leisure-sport
- Inspector
- Steven Hartley
- Postcode
- SS9 5AS
Main issues, as the Inspector framed them
- whether the proposed visitor accommodation would be suitably located when considered against the Southend-on-Sea Development Management Document 2015 policies and other guidance
- the effect of the loss of a dwelling when considered against policies in the Southend-on-Sea Core Strategy 2007
- the effect of the development upon the living conditions of the occupiers of neighbouring properties in respect of noise and disturbance
What decided it
The material harm to the living conditions of neighbouring occupiers from noise and disturbance caused by the transient nature of the short-term holiday let use, combined with the loss of a dwelling in a borough with housing undersupply and the unsuitability of the location for visitor accommodation under development plan policy.
The economic benefits of visitor accommodation and local spend were outweighed by the conflicts with development plan policies on location, loss of housing, and harm to neighbouring living conditions.
What the Inspector cited
- Development plan policies
- Policy DM12Policy CP8Policy KP2Policy CP4Policy DM1Policy DM3
- National Planning Policy Framework
- Paragraph 135
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 Southend-on-Sea City Council
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- Dismissed20 July 20266005510101 Shaftesbury Ave, Southend on Sea, SS1 3AN
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- Dismissed11 February 20263375137456 Southchurch Road, Southend-on-Sea, SS1 2QA
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.