Agenda and minutes

To receive any apologies or substitutions for the meeting.

Apologies were received from Cllr Sam Pearce-Kearney and Cllr Stuart Wheeler.

To approve and sign as a correct record the minutes of the meeting held on 26 May 2022.

The minutes of the meeting held on 24 March 2022 were presented for consideration.

Resolved:

To approve and sign the minutes as a true and correct record.

To receive any declarations of disclosable interests or dispensations granted by the Standards Committee.

Cllr Iain Wallis declared a non-pecuniary interest in relation to agenda item 7a – Mill Lane, West Lavington, SN10 4HS, as he was a tenant of Aster, the applicant. Cllr Wallis confirmed that he would judge the application on its merits, and he spoke and voted on the application.

To receive any announcements through the Chair.

There were no Chairman’s announcements.

The Council welcomes contributions from members of the public.

Statements

Members of the public who wish to speak either in favour or against an application or any other item on this agenda are asked to register no later than 10 minutes before the start of the meeting. If it is on the day of the meeting registration should be done in person.

The rules on public participation in respect of planning applications are linked to in the Council’s Planning Code of Good Practice. The Chairman will allow up to 3 speakers in favour and up to 3 speakers against an application, and up to 3 speakers on any other item on this agenda. Each speaker will be given up to 3 minutes and invited to speak immediately prior to the item being considered.

Members of the public will have had the opportunity to make representations on the planning applications and to contact and lobby their local member and any other members of the planning committee prior to the meeting. Lobbying once the debate has started at the meeting is not permitted, including the circulation of new information, written or photographic which have not been verified by planning officers.

Questions

To receive any questions from members of the public or members of the Council received in accordance with the constitution which excludes, in particular, questions on non-determined planning applications.

Those wishing to ask questions are required to give notice of any such questions in writing to the officer named on the front of this agenda no later than 5pm on Thursday 1 September 2022 in order to be guaranteed a written response. In order to receive a verbal response questions must be submitted no later than 5pm on Monday 5 September. Please contact the officer named on the front of this agenda for further advice. Questions may be asked without notice if the Chairman decides that the matter is urgent.

Details of any questions received will be circulated to Committee members prior to the meeting and made available at the meeting and on the Council’s website.

The Chairman detailed the procedure for the meeting and the procedures for public participation which were set out at item 5 of the agenda.

To receive details of the completed and pending appeals, and any other updates as appropriate.

Resolved:

To note the report on completed and pending appeals.

To consider and determine the following planning applications.

The following planning applications were considered:

Demolition of the existing buildings and construction of 19 affordable homes together with associated parking, access and landscaping.

Public Participation:

·       Clive Durrant – spoke in objection to the application

·       Matt Holmes – Agent – spoke in support of the application

·       Cllr Julia Ford, West Lavington Parish Council – spoke in objection to the application

Nick Clark, Senior Planning Officer introduced the report which recommended that planning permission be approved, for reasons detailed in the report, for the demolition of the existing buildings and construction of 19 affordable homes together with associated parking, access and landscaping.

The officer advised that the principle of redevelopment of the site is supported both by the Wiltshire Core Strategy and the West Lavington Neighbourhood Plan. The main concerns raised by objectors relate to the loss of a dedicated development for elderly accommodation, impacts in terms of traffic, neighbour amenities and the character of the area. The site is currently vacant and there is little apparent prospect of it being brought back into use in its current form. There will be a change in the residential character of the site, particularly in terms of the replacement of bungalows with 2-storey buildings. The development will continue to provide affordable housing, including housing suitable for the elderly. The proximity of the development will be noticeable to neighbours and there will also be some increase in vehicle movements resulting from the development. The impacts however are assessed as not being material in the context of the site and would not support refusal of the application.

The officer explained that his conclusion is that the scheme is considered to accord with the development plan policy and is acceptable, therefore planning permission is recommended subject to the conditions set out in the report.

In response to technical questions asked by the Committee, the officer was unable to supply information about the residents who previously occupied Hedges House; the use of solar panels were not detailed in the application plans; the existing dwellings were felt to be too small for future occupancy and not appropriate for modern living standards.

Members of the public then had the opportunity to present their views, as detailed above.

The unitary division member, Cllr Dominic Muns spoke in objection to the application. Cllr Muns asked the Committee to consider the visual impact, the relationship to adjoining properties, design (bulk, height, general appearance), environmental and highway impact and the ‘loss of the current property status (supporting elderly residents) in favour of young families catered for as part of the 50 houses going into Lavington Lane site.

In response to issues raised during public participation and the Unitary Member statement, the planning officer explained that the road junction served a number of dwellings in the vicinity of the site and highways did not raise any objections in relation to this; detail about elderly accommodation is set out in the Neighbourhood Plan, which also comments on affordable homes; the planning application refusal in the vicinity of the application site related to an application for a proposed glamping site in an adjacent field and therefore of a dissimilar  ...  view the full minutes text for item 38.

Demolition of existing open-sided, steel-framed storage barn (54 sqm). Installation of 10 x Storage containers (144 sqm).

Public Participation:

·       Andrew Oram – spoke in support of the application

·       Cllr David Woolley, Kennet Valley Parish Council – spoke in objection to the application

Jonathan James, Senior Conservation/Planning Officer introduced the report which recommended that planning permission be approved, for reasons detailed in the report, for the demolition of existing open sided, steel-framed storage barn (54 sqm) and the installation of 10 x storage containers (144 sqm).

The officer stated that the main considerations for the application included the scale of development, the visual impact on the surrounding area, the design of the scheme and the environment/highway impact.

The officer advised that the site is located outside the village of West Overton in a relatively exposed position on raised ground above the Kennet valley within the North Wessex Downs AONB. There is an existing mature tree belt along the western boundary of the site and an existing mature hedgerow with trees forming the northern boundary. There is a well-established linear former chicken shed building on the site, which benefits from planning permission for self-storage use, and adjoining steel storage containers which also benefit from planning permission. There is access into the site off the adjoining highway at the north-west corner of the site. The proposed units would be set
at the same level as the existing containers.   

The officer explained that his conclusion is that the benefits outweigh any limited harm that the proposal might have within this area and that the application complies with Core Policies 34, 51, 57, 60 and 61 of the Wiltshire Core Strategy (2015) and the policies of the National Planning Policy Framework (2021). Consequently, the development is considered acceptable in this instance.

The report detailed the responses to the consultation and representations received. It was noted that the concerns raised related to visual impact and nuisance on the amenity of the area.

In response to technical questions asked by the Committee, the officer explained that the existing containers had been in their current location for 4-6 years; condition 7 detailed in the report indicates that the development shall be used as a self-storage facility only and for no other reason.

Members of the public then had the opportunity to present their views, as detailed above.

The unitary division member, Cllr Jane Davies spoke in objection to the application. Cllr Davies commented on the scale of development, visual impact on the surrounding area, design of the scheme and the environmental/highway impact.

In response to issues raised during public participation and the Unitary Member statement, the planning officer explained that highways supported the application, and that visual impact would not be an issue as the proposed containers would be well screened by the existing structures, trees and hedgerow within the area and the removal of the ‘Dutch’ barn would be a visual enhancement.

So that the Committee had something to debate the Chairman proposed a motion to grant the application, with conditions detailed at pages 45-46 of the agenda, as per the officer  ...  view the full minutes text for item 39.

Erection of 1 No new dwelling in lieu of renewed temporary permission of use of mobile home as agricultural workers accommodation.

Public Participation:

·       Simon Chambers – Agent - spoke in support of the application

Ruaridh O’Donoghue, Senior Conservation/Planning Officer introduced the report which recommended that planning permission be approved, for reasons detailed in the report, for the erection of 1 No new dwelling in lieu of renewed temporary permission of use of mobile home as agricultural workers accommodation.

The officer stated that the main issues to be considered included:

·       The principle of a new countryside dwelling in this isolated position, with particular regard to the functional need and financial ‘tests’ established in former PPG7 Annex A which appeal inspectors have satisfied to use as a framework for establishing the justification for such dwellings (CP 48);

·       Whether the scheme constitutes high quality design (CP 57);

·       Whether the scheme would have an acceptable landscape impact (CP 51); and,

·       Whether the proposal would have a negative effect upon highway safety including if there is sufficient parking for the proposed development (CP 61 and 64). 

The officer advised that the site is located in the hamlet of Preston near Ramsbury. The applicant’s freehold ownership at the site extends to 3.2 ha (8 acres); in addition, the applicant has the option to hold a further 2.4ha (6 acres) of land under a Farm Business Tenancy (FBT) but, has no need for it at this present moment in time. The freehold land is mainly flat, with an extensive frontage to the B4192; The site lies in the open countryside to the east of the B4192 within the North Wessex Downs AONB and a Public Right of Way runs to the east of the site (ALD46). Part of the site lies within Flood Risk Zones 2 and 3.

The officer explained that his conclusion is that the proposal complies with the development plan as a whole. The application is therefore recommended for approval subject to any conditions outlined in this report.

The report detailed the responses to the consultation and representations received. It was noted that there were 2 letters of objection and 12 in support of the application.

In response to technical questions asked by the Committee, the officer explained that this application had received support from the Agricultural Advisor, whereas another application had not received this support.

Members of the public then had the opportunity to present their views, as detailed above.

The unitary division member, Cllr James Sheppard questioned the essential need for a rural worker’s dwelling on the site. Cllr Sheppard commented on his concern in relation to the long term viability and sustainability of the farm, the design of the proposal and how it didn’t enhance the ANOB, the small scale of the farm and location of the dwelling.   

In response to issues raised during public participation and the Unitary Member statement, the planning officer explained that an application cannot be refused on speculation of future events, the applicant and owner had provided accounts to indicate that the business was viable for the next 3 years, and made reference  ...  view the full minutes text for item 40.

Any other items of business which, in the opinion of the Chairman, should be taken as a matter of urgency 

There were no urgent items.