Villa St Christopher Hesketh Road Torquay TQ1 2LN Data via plota.co.uk

AT/2026/0226 - Works To Tree Within TPO Registered

Proposal

T1 ? Horse Chestnut: Fell to ground level. The tree is growing directly on top of a loose, failing stone wall, with roots displacing the structure and voids forming beneath the root plate. The wall no longer provides stable support, and the tree stands on a slope where any failure would directly target the adjacent house and garden. The tree is far younger than the established 1973 Tree Preservation Order and does not form part of the original protected stock. Removal is a proportionate risk-based intervention to prevent further structural displacement and foreseeable harm to property. T2 ? Oak: Repollard to previous pollard points. The tree is an established pollard requiring cyclical management to maintain structural stability. A bracket fungus of the genus Ganoderma is present on the stem, indicating internal decay. Repollarding will reduce lever-arm length and end-weight, mitigating risk while retaining the existing pollard framework. All cuts will be made back to existing knuckles in accordance with BS3998:2010. Data via plota.co.uk

View original council record ↗Last checked

Application progress

Received
25 Aug 2026
Decision
Expected by 20 Oct 2026

This application is under consideration - no decision has been issued yet. Plota predicts a decision around 14 Oct 2026, from Torbay's recent tree and landscaping works.

Site constraints 7

Lincombes 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 ↗
Tree preservation order: Area around Lincombe Drive, Hesketh Road, Meadfoot Sea Road
Consent is needed before work on protected trees.
Not every council has published its orders as open data, so no order shown is not proof there is none.
Special area of conservation 193 m away: Lyme Bay and Torbay
Work nearby can need a habitats assessment.
Harm to a protected site is only accepted where there is no alternative and an overriding public interest.
Habitat network: Network Enhancement Zone 2
Where habitat is joined up enough to work as a network. Context, not a constraint on its own.
SSSI 203 m away: Meadfoot Sea Road SSSI
Natural England may need consulting, depending on what is proposed.
Sites of special scientific interest are the best wildlife and geological sites in the country. Development likely to harm one is rarely permitted.
Also on the record
6 listed buildings within 150 m; Inside the Torquay built-up area.
Not affected
Outside flood zones 2 and 3 · Not green belt · No scheduled monument at the site

Checked on 11 September 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.

Work with planning data?

Every application in Torbay - and every UK council - as a live feed, an API, or a bulk CSV export.

About Plota's data service

Important details

Council
Torbay
Application type
Works To Tree Within TPO
Postcode
TQ1 2LN
Received
25 Aug 2026
Validated
25 Aug 2026
Ward
Wellswood
Case officer
Show
Decision level
Delegated
Applicant
Show

Decision outlook

Day 20 of the 56-day target. Torbay usually decides tree and landscaping works by day 50.

Day 2036 days to the 56-day target
98%decided within 8 weeks
78%approved
160decided in the last year

Plota live figures for tree and landscaping works decided by Torbay in the last twelve months, from validation. Torbay decision record →

Public comments

No public comments yet.

Last counted 9 Sept 2026

Read the comments on the council site ↗

Consultation & key dates

Alt. reference
PP-15173841
Env. assessment
No
Torbay
Planning Authority Score
1.9/10
Poor
#276 of 296 councils
Relevant to this application:
Householder decisions

Torbay is one of the slowest councils in England for householder decisions, ranking #276 out of 296. 54% of applications have the time limit extended, above the 41% national average. Householder applications are slightly more likely to be approved here (90%) than the national average (90%).

Among the slowest councils in England
for householder decisions
These figures are council-wide context, not a prediction for this application. View full council performance
Torbay decision statistics
Based on MHCLG data, the year to March 2026
87%
Overall approval rate
Above avg (87%) #183 of 296
90%
Householder approved
Above avg (90%) #197 of 296
37%
Decided in 8 weeks
Below avg (63%) #276 of 296
54%
Extended time limit
Above avg (41%) #247 of 296
81%
Minor dwellings approved
53 decided (1-9 homes)
100%
Major dwellings approved
9 decided (10+ homes)
91%
Change of use approved
44 decided
529
Total decisions
68 refused in the year to March 2026