Planning secured for innovative architect designed dwelling in the Cotswolds AONB

Great to be part of the project team assisting on an interesting project for a single dwelling in Stroud. This case provides a further example of why a planning refusal doesn’t necessarily have to mean the end of the line for your development aspirations.

A single dwelling in the Cotswolds AONB

The landowner had previously sought to secure planning for a single dwelling on site through the proposed demolition of residential outbuildings and their replacement with a detached dwelling, however their application was refused, and the case was dismissed at planning appeal. This is is often fatal to any future chances of similar development on site.

Identifying an effective planning approach following a refusal

The key reasons for refusal related to issues surrounding the perceived impact of the proposed dwelling on the openness of the countryside and on the character and appearance of the surrounding area, given its location within the Cotswolds AONB.

We arranged for a pre-application meeting with the local council during which we successfully established the principle of sustainable development on site and sought clarity from the council regarding the issues that needed to be addressed to secure a positive determination.

We pulled together a strong project team, comprising Tyler Grange who provided a Landscape and Visual Appraisal and Landscape Opportunities and Constraints Plan and architects at Millar Howard Workshop who oversaw the redesign.

How we added value

The revised scheme sought to respond to the concerns raised in both the first application and appeal over design, appearance and access and identified how each issue could be addressed successfully. We prepared a robust planning statement to evidence this, including:

• a context review of the area, identifying how the proposals would assimilate well into and improve on the existing setting and context;
• talked through the design rationale in planning terms and identified how it responded to the previous refusals and met local and national policy requirements;
• evidenced how the proposed dwelling would support the provision of windfall sites in the area and respond to an identified need.

With the expertise of our planning consultants, the architects at MH Workshop and landscape specialists at Tyler Grange, we were able to present informed revisions to the scheme which directly addressed the previous concerns raised by the Council and the points raised in the pre-application advice.

The result is a cleverly designed scheme, comprising of a single storey dwelling with a green sedum roof set within an enhanced landscape, which will provide sustainable ‘lifetime’ accommodation for future occupiers.

We are delighted with the approval and the site is now available to purchase.

About Plainview Planning

Plainview Planning has been helping clients with residential, commercial and householder development projects for over 11 years. If you feel your project would benefit from experienced planning consultant input, then contact the team via enquiries@plainview.co.uk or call us on 01242 501003 to see how we can best assist you, providing the site address and a brief overview of your project. We value your privacy and any information which you provide will not be shared outside of our company and will only be used in relation to your enquiry.

Image source:

Millar Howard Workshop (2018)