Agenda item

The erection of a residential dwelling.

Public Participation:

Mr Nick Patterson-Neild, Agent, spoke in support of the application.

Mr Bill Evans, Applicant, spoke in support of the application.

The Planning Officer, Jonathan James, introduced a report which recommended that planning permission be refused for the erection of a residential dwelling. Key details were stated to include the principle of development, as the site lies within open countryside outside any defined Limits of Development and impact upon the character and appearance of the landscape, as the site lies within the North Wessex Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.

Attention was drawn to late correspondence circulated at the meeting which was summarised by the officer.

Members of the Committee then had the opportunity to ask technical questions of the officer. Details were sought on whether the Parish was in the process of preparing a Neighbourhood Plan.

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

A debate followed, whereby the key issues raised included; that the site was outside the settlement boundary of the village of Baydon; and that the application did not meet the criteria for an exception to the policy to restrict residential development outside of the settlement boundary. Paragraph 55 of the NPPF was cited, which supports dwellings, beyond those necessary for essential needs or supporting heritage, where they are considered to be of exceptional quality or of innovative nature in design. However, the Design Review Panel did not feel that the applied for dwelling met those criteria. Other issues raised included the location of the site in the Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, and the potential for other similar applications in the open countryside and the precedent this would set.

Following debate, and following a motion from Cllr Mark Connolly, seconded by Cllr Jerry Kunkler, the Committee voted on the motion to refuse as recommended by officers and it was:

Resolved:

To refuse planning permission for the following reasons:

1.    The site is located in open countryside, outside of the limits of development for any nearby settlements (as defined in the Wiltshire Core Strategy) and in a location poorly-served by local services and amenities, where none of the exceptions policies listed at paragraph 4.25 are applicable. Nor has the site been identified through the neighbourhood planning process. The proposal would therefore conflict with Core Policies 1, 2, 14 and 60 of the Wiltshire Core Strategy (2015), which seeks to properly plan for sustainable development of housing in Wiltshire and to central government policy contained within the National Planning Policy Framework.

2.    The proposal would result in residential development and associated domestic paraphernalia within the countryside which, in turn, would erode the rural character of the area and negatively impact on the appearance of the landscape, which is designated as the North Wessex Downs Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. This would conflict with Core Policies 51 and 57 of the Wiltshire Core Strategy and with paragraph 115 of the National Planning Policy Framework, which gives great weight to conserving the landscape of areas of outstanding natural beauty.