Whitelands Farm Sports Ground Whitelands Way Bicester OX26 1AJ Data via plota.co.uk

26/01968/CDC - Deemed Regs 3 Under Consultation

Proposal

Creation of a synthetic turf pitch including fencing, floodlighting, storage container, pathways, spectator areas and ancillary equipment Data via plota.co.uk

View original council record ↗Last checked

Application progress

✓
Received
5 Aug 2026
✓
Validated
1 Sept 2026
Decision
Expected by 6 Nov 2026

Under consideration

No decision has been issued yet. Plota predicts a decision around 29 Oct 2026, from Cherwell's recent commercial and major works.

The consultation period closed on 5 Oct 2026.

Documents 31

All documents on the council site ↗

Site constraints 4

Agricultural land, grade 3b, surveyed
Not best and most versatile land (grades 1, 2 and 3a). Source: Natural England's post-1988 ALC field survey (Reading). Natural England's Provisional ALC map (1:250,000, 1970s) agrees.
Where development of farmland is needed, policy prefers poorer land over the best and most versatile (grades 1, 2 and 3a). Three sources: Natural England's post-1988 field surveys, which are definitive where they exist; the Defra predictive map for England (2025) and the Welsh Government predictive map, modelled from the soil map with 3a and 3b split; and the 1970s provisional map, which planners and other services still show, coarser and with grade 3 undivided. Where the provisional and predicted grades disagree, treat the predicted grade as the current estimate and expect an application to carry its own survey.
Survey report ↗
National infrastructure project about 485 m away: Oxfordshire Strategic Rail Freight Interchange
The site is about 485 m from the project boundary. Rail freight interchange, under examination. Also within 2 km: East West Rail - Bedford to Cambridge and Western improvements (at pre-application, about 1167 m).
Nationally significant infrastructure projects (power stations, electricity lines, pipelines, major roads and railways, harbours, airports and reservoirs) are consented by a Secretary of State under the Planning Act 2008, after an examination by the Planning Inspectorate, rather than by the council. The boundary is the one the Inspectorate consults on and can change as the scheme does. Projects are shown within 2 km of the site.
Planning Inspectorate project page ↗
Also on the record
Radon affected area, class 2; Inside the Bicester built-up area.
Not affected
Outside flood zones 2 and 3 · Not green belt · No scheduled monument at the site

Checked on 6 October 2026. The pin for this application is the centre of its postcode rather than the building, so distances to nearby designations are measured from the postcode and can be out by the width of the postcode area. Historic England, the Environment Agency, Natural England, the Planning Inspectorate, the British Geological Survey and UK Health Security Agency (radon, contains BGS materials © UKRI) 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.

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Important details

Council
Cherwell
Application type
Deemed Regs 3
Postcode
OX26 1AJ
Received
5 Aug 2026
Validated
1 Sept 2026
Ward
Bicester South And Ambrosden
Parish
Bicester
Case officer
Show
Target decision
6 Nov 2026
Decision level
Committee
Applicant
Show

Decision outlook

Day 58, past the statutory target. 77% of commercial and major works in Cherwell are decided within thirteen weeks, which runs to 1 Dec 2026; extensions of time are common, and the council need not decide on the day. Last seen undecided on 28 Oct 2026.

Day 582 days past the 56-day target
50%decided within 8 weeks
90%approved
16%go to committee

Plota live figures for commercial and major works decided by Cherwell in the last twelve months, from validation. Cherwell decision record →

Public comments

2comments received

Last counted 28 Oct 2026

Read the comments on the council site ↗

Consultation & key dates

Comments by
5 Oct 2026
Committee
5 Nov 2026
Cherwell
Planning Authority Score
3.6/10
Below average
#214 of 296 councils
Relevant to this application:
Householder decisions

Cherwell is slower than most councils at deciding householder applications, ranking #247 out of 296. 49% of applications have the time limit extended, above the 41% national average. Householder applications are slightly more likely to be approved here (94%) 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
Cherwell decision statistics
Based on MHCLG data, the year to March 2026
92%
Overall approval rate
Above avg (87%) #77 of 296
94%
Householder approved
Above avg (90%) #101 of 296
47%
Decided in 8 weeks
Below avg (63%) #247 of 296
49%
Extended time limit
Above avg (41%) #218 of 296
77%
Minor dwellings approved
117 decided (1-9 homes)
95%
Major dwellings approved
19 decided (10+ homes)
96%
Change of use approved
47 decided
1,091
Total decisions
90 refused in the year to March 2026