Cockfield Hall hotel conversion at Cockfield Hall Station Road, Yoxford, Saxmundham

What was proposed

The application sought listed building consent to convert Cockfield Hall into a hotel, with partial rebuilding, an extension and removal of ancillary structures.

“DC/24/2469/LBC - Hotel - Cockfield Hall, Station Road, Yoxford, Saxmundham, Suffolk IP17 3ET The Committee received report ES/2572 of the Head of Planning and Building Control which related to planning application DC/24/2469/LBC.”

Minutes

The heritage setting

Cockfield Hall is a Grade I listed building within the Yoxford Conservation Area, with Grade II listed park and gardens.

“DC/24/2469/LBC for the proposed physical alterations to the Listed Buildings. 8.2.Policy SCLP6.5 of the Local Plan supports tourism accommodation initiatives that enhance and broaden the choice of accommodation and visitor destination facilities. This broad support for tourism related development is also highlighted in Policies SCLP6.1 and SCLP6.4, of which this proposal accords with.”

“8.4.In landscape terms, it is concluded that the implementation of these proposals as described will be a notably positive enhancement of the estate and Grade II Listed Park and Gardens and accords with the Policy SCLP11.8.”

Officer report

Highway and public benefits

The highway authority found the access, parking and surrounding road network acceptable, while officers identified substantial benefits across all three strands of sustainability.

“8.7.Suffolk County Council, as the local highway found that the intensification of the use of the existing access and parking strategy were acceptable and that the surrounding road network has capacity for this scale of development when considered cumulatively with other infrastructure projects such as Sizewell; the proposal would therefore not have an unacceptable impact on highway safety in accordance with the Local Plan and NPPF.”

Officer report

Concerns about intensive use

The parish council raised concerns about intensified use, risks to the listed building and its setting, and the proposal’s relationship with the village.

“The Parish Council Representative told the Committee they were concerned about the Listed Building Consent, Cockfield Hall was a beautiful and important heritage asset, a grade 1 listed building in the top 2.5% of buildings. They were worried about the intensification of use; the footprint was to be doubled with the extensions and there were likely to be further associated listed buildings that would come into the whole hotel and portfolio.”

“The Parish Council Representative said there were concerns with the heritage impact analysis that it had not looked at increased intensity of use and all of the activity, structures and people that go with that. They wanted to stress that they hoped social sustainability would remain given it should be a publicly open space as a hotel. In the spirit of protection of listed building consent, they hoped these things would be looked at.”

Minutes

Who spoke

The committee heard from a parish council representative, the applicant, the architect and the ward councillor.

The committee voted

Councillor Pitchers proposed approval and Councillor Hammond seconded it before the committee resolved to approve the application.

“On the proposition of Councillor Pitchers, seconded by Councillor Hammond it was…”

“That the application be APPROVED subject to the conditions below.”

Minutes