Howards House Church Lane Cardington Bedford Bedfordshire MK44 3SR Data via plota.co.uk

26/00179/MAF - Major Full and Change of Use Awaiting decision
Change of useSchools, care & community

Proposal

Change of use from vacant 9 bedroom residential dwelling house to class F1 (provision of education) independent special educational needs School with minor internal alterations. Data via plota.co.uk

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View original council record ↗Last checked

Application progress

✓
Received
30 Jan 2026
✓
Validated
26 Mar 2026
✓
Consultation
5 Jun 2026
Decision
Expected by 16 Oct 2026

Under consideration

No decision has been issued yet. Plota predicted a decision soon after comments close on 10 Jul 2026; it is now day 197.

The consultation period closed on 10 Jul 2026.

Documents

View the documents on the council's website ↗

Site constraints 5

Grade II* listed: Howard's House
List entry 1114147 · 4 m away · 14 more listed buildings within 150 m (14 Grade II)
Listed building consent is needed for work that affects the special interest of a listed building, inside or out, on top of planning permission. Setting can be a consideration for buildings nearby; there is no fixed radius.
Show the other 14 with distances
Historic England ↗
Registered park or garden: Garden to Howard's House
Nationally designated heritage. Its significance and setting carry great weight.
Registered parks and gardens, battlefields, world heritage sites and protected wrecks are designated heritage assets: harm needs clear and convincing justification.
Historic England ↗
Cardington conservation area
Demolition needs planning permission and permitted development is restricted.
The council must give weight to preserving or enhancing the area's character and appearance. Not every council has published its boundaries as open data.
Council document ↗
Also on the record
Inside the Cardington built-up area; Natural England's Provisional ALC map (1:250,000, 1970s) had this area as grade 2, but it predates the buildings here and the current map does not class it as farmland.
Not affected
Outside flood zones 2 and 3 · Not green belt · No scheduled monument at the site

Checked on 6 October 2026. Historic England, the Environment Agency, Natural England and council datasets, Open Government Licence. A boundary can run through a site and the council holds the definitive record: confirm with the council before relying on this.

Building

Floor area610 m² (6,566 sq ft)
Energy ratingF (25 out of 100), could reach C
PropertyDetached house, 16 habitable rooms
BuiltBefore 1900
HeatingBoiler and radiators, oil
WallsSolid brick, as built, no insulation (assumed)

From the energy performance certificate lodged in June 2025, the latest held for this property. The building may have changed since. View the certificate

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2 Sept 2026Approved

270 & 271 Bedford Road Cardington Bedford Bedfordshire MK44 3SS

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Important details

Council
Bedford
Application type
Major Full and Change of Use
Postcode
MK44 3SR
Received
30 Jan 2026
Validated
26 Mar 2026
Ward
Shortstown
Parish
Cardington
Case officer
Show
Target decision
16 Oct 2026
Applicant
Show
Agent
M A Iqbal Architecture - Mr M Iqbal

Decision outlook

Day 197, past the statutory target. 66% of changes of use in Bedford are decided within thirteen weeks; extensions of time are common, and the council need not decide on the day. Last seen undecided on 7 Oct 2026.

Day 197141 days past the 56-day target
39%decided within 8 weeks
66%approved
12%go to committee

Plota live figures for changes of use decided by Bedford in the last twelve months, from validation. Bedford decision record →

Public comments

6comments received
5 objecting1 neutral

83% object · above the UK average of 74%

11 neighbours consulted · Last counted 6 Oct 2026

Read the comments on the council site ↗

Consultation & key dates

Alt. reference
PP-14651977
Planning Portal ref
PP-14651977
Neighbours
5 Jun 2026
Consultation
5 Jun 2026
Comments by
10 Jul 2026
Site or press notice
12 Jun 2026
Env. assessment
No

Historical activity at this location

13 previous applications on record - archival context, not part of the live application.

This property

Previous applications at this address

2024 Approved
Single storey extension on South Western elevation and minor external and internal altera…
24/00830/LBC
2024 Approved
Single storey extension on South Western elevation and minor external and internal altera…
24/00829/FUL
2024 Approved
Yew (T1) - fell.
24/01138/TCA
2024 Approved
Yew - Remove
24/00729/TCA
2023 Approved
Oak Tree - Fell
23/01417/TCA
2023 Approved
Poplar tree - Fell
23/00234/TCA
2021 Approved
Holm Oak - 50% reduction. Poplar tree - Removal.
21/02315/TCA
2016 Approved
Poplar - Crown reduce to remove decayed branches
16/03333/TCA
Within ~100m

Nearby activity

2024 Approved
325 Church Lane Cardington Bedford Bedfordshire MK44 3SR
Yew Tree located to the rear of the property: - Crown raise to clear branches from bounda…
24/01356/TCA
2023 Approved
Trinity House Church Lane Cardington Bedford Bedfordshire MK44 3SR
silver birch - remove.
23/02324/TCA
2023 Approved
St Mary Church Church Lane Cardington Bedford Bedfordshire MK44 3SR
3 Lime Group - ID 1 - Remove 20 percent of of inner growth to thin crown, to include all…
23/01359/TCA
2016 Approved
Trinity House Church Lane Cardington Bedford Bedfordshire MK44 3SR
15/01775/LBC - Condition 3 - Sample Panel (Various repairs and adaptions to listed buildi…
16/01050/AOC
2016 Approved
Trinity House Church Lane Cardington Bedford MK44 3SR
15/01775/LBC - Condition 5 Jib door (Various repairs and adaptions to listed building, to…
16/00357/AOC
Bedford
Planning Authority Score
2.4/10
Poor
#253 of 296 councils
Relevant to this application:
Change of use

Bedford is slower than most councils at deciding householder applications, ranking #201 out of 296. 52% of applications have the time limit extended, above the 41% national average. Householder applications are slightly less likely to be approved here (86%) than the national average (90%).

Slower than most councils
for householder decisions
These figures are council-wide context, not a prediction for this application. View full council performance
Bedford decision statistics
Based on MHCLG data, the year to March 2026
80%
Overall approval rate
Below avg (87%) #259 of 296
86%
Householder approved
Below avg (90%) #239 of 296
56%
Decided in 8 weeks
Below avg (63%) #201 of 296
52%
Extended time limit
Above avg (41%) #233 of 296
52%
Minor dwellings approved
109 decided (1-9 homes)
69%
Major dwellings approved
26 decided (10+ homes)
67%
Change of use approved
57 decided
993
Total decisions
203 refused in the year to March 2026
Source: MHCLG planning statistics · See full council rankings

Energy performance: Energy performance certificates from the Energy Performance of Buildings Register, Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. © Crown copyright 2026.