Field House, Frant

A successful appeal for planning permission to build a new home close to the Ashdown Forest.

Details

Mr Sheffield approached Parker Dann after his application to build a home for his family was recommended by a sympathetic Planning Officer, but then refused by Wealden District Council Planning Committee on the grounds of its proximity to the Ashdown Forest Special Protection Area (SPA) / Special Areas of Conservation (SAC) and the location being considered unsustainable within the district.

We helped guide Mr Sheffield through the complicated issues of environmental conservation and how it interacts with Planning policy, and submitted a Planning Appeal in which we argued successfully that the impact of the Ashdown Forest SPA / SAC was capable of mitigation. We also demonstrated to the Planning Inspector that the site was sustainably located to goods and services – albeit those of a different District Council – and it would be possible to live there without being a dependent on a car, despite Wealden Council’s protestations otherwise.

The appeal was upheld, the refusal overturned and the home was finally completed in 2021.