160 homes at Land North Of The Groves, Burnham Road, Latchingdon

What was proposed

Reserved matters were sought for the appearance, landscaping, layout and scale of up to 160 homes, with associated open space and infrastructure.

“The current proposal seeks reserved matters approval for the matters of appearance, landscaping, layout and scale. The outline scheme to which this reserved matters application relates (hereon referred to as the “Outline Permission”) was allowed at appeal (Planning Inspectorate (PINS) reference APP/X1545/W/23/3331398) on 05/07/2024 following the refusal of planning application ref 22/01174/OUTM in 2023.”

“The Outline Permission reserved the matters of Appearance, Landscaping, Layout, Scale, which are therefore considerations within this current reserved matters application.”

Officer report

The site

The site is about 10.2 hectares of agricultural fields beside Latchingdon, with hedgerows, trees, ditches and a World War II pillbox.

“The application site (hereon referred to as the “Site”) comprises a c. 10.2 hectare (ha) parcel of land situated on the eastern side of Latchingdon, adjacent to the outer limit of the Latchingdon settlement boundary.”

“The existing Site comprises two agricultural fields south of Steeple Road and north of Burnham Road and includes some native hedgerows, boundary trees and ditches. Detached dwellings bounded by mature hedges lie to the south and to the west lies more modern residential development which forms the edge of the village.”

Officer report

Earlier planning decisions

The outline application was refused in 2023 but allowed on appeal in 2024, with a later amendment correcting the zebra crossing plan.

“Officers are aware that the Outline Permission states that the scheme would include “5% bungalows”. This was changed within the course of the appeal to 10 per cent bungalows. The inspector noted this in his report, in addition to the appellant’s request for the level of affordable housing to be increased from 40 to 50 per cent (although this is not noted in the description of development).”

“The Outline Permission was varied through a non-material amendment (ref 24/00905/NMA) which was approved on 12/12/2024 to replace one of the approved highways site access plans with a version which amends the location of a zebra crossing correctly.”

Officer report

What officers recommended

Officers recommended approval because the proposal complied with the outline permission, provided suitable housing and landscaping, and protected residents’ amenities.

“The proposal complies with the constraints of the Outline Permission and proposes an accessible and usable layout, with high quality landscaping. The proposed houses would meet the relevant requirements in terms of quality of accommodation and parking, and would be of a high quality design which respects the local townscape character and is suitably screened by soft landscaping on the Site boundaries, in particular the eastern boundary onto open space.”

“Officers note that the affordable housing unit-size mix was amended mid-application to comply with the recently published Local Housing Needs Assessment (LHNA). The housing team have provided supporting comments on the scheme.”

Officer report

Objections raised

Fourteen objections concerned housing, countryside, traffic, privacy, construction disturbance, wildlife, drainage, infrastructure and cumulative effects.

“Objection Comment Officer Response Principle of development • Retirement bungalows rather than houses should be built in this location. • Affordable housing should be moved away from existing housing. • The LDP directs development towards existing settlements with appropriate infrastructure. Latchingdon, while a designated settlement, has limited services and facilities to support a significant increase in population.”

“Conditions 15, 16 and 17 f the Outline Permission secured the submission of a Surface Water Drainage Scheme, Drainage Maintenance Scheme and Foul Water Drainage details respectively. Other • Insufficient local infrastructure such as schools, doctors and dentists. • The cumulative impact of these developments has not been adequately assessed.”

Officer report

Who spoke

The applicant addressed the committee after the officers’ presentation.

Members’ discussion

Members questioned appearance, lighting, hedgerow removal, layout, buffers, footpaths, play areas, drainage, affordable housing, access and the nursery land.

“During the lengthy debate that ensued the Officer provided Members with further clarification in respect of the appearance of the proposed dwellings, lighting scheme, removal of hedgerow, layout, landscape buffer, proposed footpaths, maintenance of Local Areas of Play and Local Equipped Areas of Play, and the discharge of proposed conditions if the application was approved.”

“Education contributions had been dealt with at the outline stage. It was noted that the contributions related to primary school places and no nursery contribution had been required. In respect of the nursery provision on the site, Members were advised of relevant condition which set out the period when the applicant would need to market the site for a nursery, however if after that period no interest had been received the area of land allocated for a nursery would revert…”

Minutes

The vote

A proposal to approve in line with the officers’ recommendation, subject to amended and additional conditions, was seconded and agreed.

“Councillor S J N Morgan proposed that the application be approved in accordance with Officers’ recommendation, subject to the amendments to conditions 3, 4 and 7 as set out in the Members’ Update and additional condition as suggested by the Director of Place, Planning and Growth. This proposal was duly seconded and upon a vote being taken this was duly agreed.”

Minutes

The decision

The application was approved subject to the listed conditions, amended wording and an additional condition, with wording to be agreed with the chairperson.

“RESOLVED that this application be APPROVED subject to the following conditions and additional condition as set out above, the wording of which is to be agreed in consultation with the Chairperson of the Committee: Approved Plans The development shall be carried out in accordance with the following approved plans: • 03 Site Location Plan • Proposed Site Plan 25-0115-002 Rev D • Proposed Massing Plan 25-0115-003 Rev B • Proposed Refuse and Cycle Strategy 25-0115-004 Rev…”

Minutes