Land off Fairoaks Drive

A proposed development of 37 dwellings on land off Fairoaks Drive, Connah’s Quay had been denied permission by Flintshire County Council. Philip had been involved in the application and previous proposals. All had met with considerable local opposition, with the latest being refused by the Council on the grounds of claimed harm to the living conditions of nearby residents due to overlooking; a shortfall in the provision of affordable housing; and alleged harm to highway safety because of a shortfall of car parking spaces when judged against the Council’s parking standards.

Following an appeal by the written method conducted by Philip, the inspector appointed by Welsh ministers found that the development would not unacceptably overlook neighbouring property as the layout would meet the minimum separation distances applied by the Council, having regard to levels and the scale of the development. On parking, he noted that the Council’s standards were expressed as a maximum, and a level of provision up to that standard should not be applied as a prescriptive requirement, he held. In addition, the appellant had agreed to a proposed travel plan and a financial contribution towards it, to be secured by a unilateral undertaking that had been submitted with the appeal. He therefore had no compelling evidence before him to indicate that the shortfall from the maximum parking standard would cause a highway safety concern.

With regard to affordable housing, the inspector noted that the Council’s housing strategy manager had not opposed the provision of 8 discounted rental homes, the need for which had been described in the officer’s report to the Council’s planning committee. Moreover, the appellant had supplied a viability report that had been independently assessed by the Valuation Office Agency, which had confirmed the view that 8 affordable rental units would be proportionate to the overall viability of the development. The appeal was therefore allowed.

The proposed development involved building on the northern part of a site that was identified in the Council’s local development plan as a housing allocation. Philip also acted as planning agent for the developer of the adjoining land to the south, Edwards Homes Ltd, successfully securing permission for another 33 dwellings following lengthy negotiations with Council officers over multiple planning issues. The approved development (Broad Oak) is currently under construction.