321 Hartshill Road, Stoke-on-trent, ST4 7NR

Change of use of the ground floor from public house (Sui Generis) to two retail units (Convenience shop & Hair & Beauty Salon, Use Class E Commercial, Business and Service). Conversion of the upper floor to three flats (C3), with new shopfront and elevational alterations’ without complying with conditions attached to planning permission Ref 25/FUL/00135, dated 13 January 2026

Authority: Stoke-on-Trent City Council
Appeal type: minor · Planning
Procedure: Written
Development: retail
Postcode: ST4 7NR

Main issues, as the Inspector framed them

The effect of varying conditions 2 and 3 on the host building and character and appearance of the area, with particular regard to the Hartshill Conservation Area

What decided it

The insertion of larger single-pane windows would cause less than substantial but material harm to the character and appearance of the non-designated heritage asset and the conservation area, which cannot be outweighed by unsubstantiated benefits.

Framework references: 215, 216

Plan policies cited: CSP1, CSP2

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.