Higher Farm Equine Ltd, HIGHER FARM Stocks Lane, Over Peover, Knutsford, Cheshire East, WA16 8BF Data via plota.co.uk

25/2497/FUL - Full Planning Approved

Proposal

Retrospective change of use of land and buildings from agriculture to equestrian use with associated ancillary development, including private livery, outdoor arena and equine-assisted learning. Data via plota.co.uk

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View original council record ↗Last checked 4 Oct 2026, 07:46

Application progress

✓

Received

1 Jul 2025

✓

Validated

8 Jul 2025

✓

Committee

29 Oct 2025

✓

Approved

5 Nov 2025

Approved on 5 Nov 2025 · Strategic Planning Board · Last checked 1 Oct 2026

Planning committee

Decided by Cheshire East Strategic Planning Board on 29 Oct 2025.

Approved

No officer report was published for this decision; this summary is from the committee minutes.

The application was a retrospective change of use from agriculture to equestrian use, including a private livery and outdoor arena.
The committee approved the application as recommended, subject to conditions including a ban on flood lighting and on using the buildings as a cafe.

Source: Plota analysis of Cheshire East's committee minutes, Cheshire East Strategic Planning Board minutes, 29 October 2025 .

Documents 17

Site constraints 4

Green belt: Merseyside and Greater Manchester

Inappropriate development needs very special circumstances.

Green belt policy allows a short list of exceptions, such as limited extensions and replacement buildings. Anything else needs very special circumstances that clearly outweigh the harm.

Agricultural land, grade 2

Best and most versatile land (grades 1, 2 and 3a). Source: the Predictive Agricultural Land Classification Map (Defra and Natural England, 2025; the Welsh Government's Predictive ALC Map 2 in Wales), a model rather than a site survey. Natural England's Provisional ALC map (1:250,000, 1970s), which most planning maps still show, had this area as grade 3. The predicted grade is Defra's current estimate; only a site survey settles it.

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.

Habitat network: Network Enhancement Zone 2

Where habitat is joined up enough to work as a network. Context, not a constraint on its own.

Also on the record

Priority habitat about 45 m away: Lowland raised bog.

Not affected

Outside flood zones 2 and 3 · No scheduled monument at the site

Checked on 26 September 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 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.

Sales history 1

Last sold for £3,500,000 in March 2025. Detached house, freehold.

7 March 2025£3,500,000Recorded as a transfer outside a standard sale

Sale prices from HM Land Registry's price paid record, matched to this application by its address.

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Important details

Council: Cheshire East
Application type: Full Planning
Postcode: WA16 8BF
Received: 1 Jul 2025
Validated: 8 Jul 2025
Ward: Chelford
Parish: Peover Superior and Snelson
Case officer: Show
Target decision: 5 Nov 2025
Decision: Approved With Conditions
Decision date: 5 Nov 2025
Decision level: Strategic Planning Board
Applicant: Show
Agent: Wharfe Rural Planning Ltd

How this decision compares

Decided in 120 days from validation, 28 days slower than Cheshire East's median of 92 for changes of use. Approved, as 82% of changes of use here are.

This one120d

Council92d

UK56d

26%decided within 8 weeks

82%approved

5%go to committee

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

Consultation & key dates

Comments by: 6 Aug 2025
Statutory expiry: 5 Nov 2025

Historical activity at this location

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

This property

Previous applications at this address

2025 Approved

The siting of a static lodge that meets the definition of a caravan on existing hardstand…

25/2658/FUL 11 Jul 2025

Within ~100m

Nearby activity

2021 Refused

Colshaw Hall Farm, STOCKS LANE, OVER PEOVER, WA16 8BF

Proposed farm manager's dwelling

21/3213M 5 Sep 2024

2017 Approved

Colshaw Hall Farm, STOCKS LANE, OVER PEOVER, WA16 8BF

Installation of storage containers and diesel storage tanks

17/5655M 11 Feb 2020

2018 Approved

Colshaw Hall Farm Stocks Lane, Over Peover, Knutsford, Cheshire East, WA16 8BF

Prior notification for proposed agricultural building for the storage of farm machinery a…

18/5693M 24 Dec 2018

2018 Withdrawn

Colshaw Hall Farm Stocks Lane, Over Peover, Knutsford, Cheshire East, WA16 8BF

To construct a permanent dwelling to replace temporary farm workers accommodation granted…

18/4774M 13 Nov 2018

Cheshire East

Planning Authority Score

1.9/10

Poor

#274 of 296 councils

Relevant to this application:

Change of use

Cheshire East is one of the slowest councils in England for householder decisions, ranking #268 out of 296. The council extends the time limit on 65% of applications - one of the highest rates in England. Expect your application to take longer than the standard deadline. Householder applications are slightly more likely to be approved here (91%) 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

Cheshire East decision statistics

Based on MHCLG data, the year to March 2026

87%

Overall approval rate

Above avg (87%) #168 of 296

91%

Householder approved

Above avg (90%) #170 of 296

39%

Decided in 8 weeks

Below avg (63%) #268 of 296

65%

Extended time limit

Above avg (41%) #279 of 296

72%

Minor dwellings approved

358 decided (1-9 homes)

76%

Major dwellings approved

25 decided (10+ homes)

79%

Change of use approved

119 decided

2,513

Total decisions

321 refused in the year to March 2026