Land to the east of Boundary Lane, Hesketh Bank, PR4 6AJ

Main issues, as the Inspector framed them

• whether the appeal site would be a suitable location for the proposed development, with regard to its 'protected land' designation
• the effect of the proposed development on flood risk
• the effect of the proposed development on protected species

What decided it

The inadequate assessment of water vole impacts and the inability to demonstrate that the development would avoid harm to this protected and endangered species, combined with the layout's failure to achieve the recommended protection buffer, meant the adverse impacts significantly and demonstrably outweighed the housing benefits under the tilted balance.

The benefits of housing delivery and efficient use of land attracted significant weight, but the substantial harm to water voles (a protected and endangered species) and conflict with the Framework's biodiversity principles attracted substantial weight, causing the adverse impacts to significantly and demonstrably outweigh the benefits.