Planning inspectorate overturns refusal of nine-home development on corner of Tring Road and Wingrave Road
A decision to refuse permission for nine self-build homes near Wilstone has been overturned by the planning inspectorate.
It comes after an appeal from Sedas Strategic Land, whose application to build next to Dixons Wharf was rejected by Dacorum Borough Council last year.
Planning permission was refused by the council on the grounds that the new homes would have a “poor relationship” with Wilstone, would not be sympathetic to its surroundings, and would “harmfully detract” from the area’s “established character”.
But, in a decision issued this month, the planning inspector said: “I find the substantial benefits of the scheme, comprising the provision of self-build housing, and the various economic, biodiversity and social benefits, all taken together, clearly outweigh any harms arising.”
The site, on the corner of Wingrave Road and Tring Road, is outside Wilstone itself and is in “open countryside”.
The planning inspector accepted that it was not previously developed land and that the location “would conflict with the council’s strategy for the location of development”.
They also recognised that the plans would “cause moderate harm to the character and appearance of the area” by “urbanising” it.
But they dismissed concerns about the amount of car parking which will be possible at the site, and said that given the “limited views and into and out of the site, the proposal would not have a significant adverse effect on the rural character of the area”.
Final plans for the parking and for the buildings themselves, will be ironed out in future applications, with the current application being for outline permission only.
The inspector said Dacorum’s supply of deliverable housing sites is “very poor” at only 1.03 years, well below the expected minimum of five years.
It means it is currently harder for the council to block new developments, with a ‘tilted balance’ meaning new homes should be approved unless the harms “significantly and demonstrably” outweigh the benefits.
The inspector also noted that the council currently has a shortfall of 138 self-build plots against demand.