Planning Freethinking December 2022: Impacts of the Hillside Parks case - Toddington Lane Appeal

Background

A Planning Inspector has dismissed an appeal for 71 dwellings at Toddington Lane in Arun. This is partly due to the risk that granting planning permission could jeopardise the delivery of the balance of the Hampton Park Urban Extension, which provides for a far greater number of dwellings, infrastructure, community and other non-residential uses. The Outline planning permission granted in 2013 for the urban extension authorised up to 1,260 dwellings.Our previous updates on the Hillside Parks case are here:

• Supreme Court issues landmark judgment on slot-in planning applications in Hillside Parks Ltd v Snowdonia National Park Authority [2022] UKSC 30
• Supreme Court issues landmark judgment in Hillside Parks case greatly affecting planning & real estate practice

Our view

The Inspector considered that the appeal scheme did not accord with other policies and weighed the potential effect of the Hillside Parks case in the balance on the tilted balance.It will be interesting to see the approach that local planning authorities and the Planning Inspectorate will take when a drop-in planning application accords with planning policy and, therefore, engages S38(6) of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 to determine the application in accordance with the development plan unless material considerations indicate otherwise.This issue will be whether the effect of the Hillside Parks case on the larger planning permission is a sufficient “other material consideration” to refuse planning permission for a scheme that accords with planning policy. A case-by-case planning judgement will be required, but we can envisage circumstances when planning permission is refused.

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Should you wish to discuss how to resolve issues relating to the Hillside Parks case, please do not hesitate to get in touch with a member of the Planning Team or Environment Team.