Appeal 3323169

The appeal is allowed and planning permission is granted for a roller shutter door to the carport at [site address] , Altrincham, Trafford [postcode] in accordance with the terms of the application, Ref 109413/HHA/22, dated 18 October 2022, subject to the following conditions:

The development hereby permitted shall begin not later than 3 years from the date of this decision.

The development hereby permitted shall be carried out in accordance with approved plan no. DPD/2022/028 01D.

The main issue is the effect of the proposed development on the character and appearance of the host property and the area.

The host property sits on a fairly modern estate, where the mix of detached, semi-detached and terraced dwellings have a broadly similar design, with consistent facing materials, and are set just back from the highway. Many have recessed garages, typically with white-painted doors to match the houses’ window frames, whilst others, including the terraced property here, have open car ports to the side.

The Council’s Supplementary Planning Document No 4 – A Guide for [address] Extensions and Alterations 2012 (‘SPD’) advises that extensions should harmonise with their surroundings having regard to matters including form and finish; and that new garages, or garage extensions, should reflect the style of the property and should blend in with the streetscene.

I observed that the car ports on this estate, including this terrace, and which were constructed as part of the original design, remain open to the front. Notwithstanding that, the proposed roller shutter door here would be slightly recessed behind the host’s front face, thus providing a degree of articulation.

Additionally, its white-painted steel finish, as depicted on the proposed plan and elevation, would match the colour of the host’s window frames, and would accord with the colour of nearby garage doors, including at 34, 35 and [address]. I am not persuaded that the orientation of the shutter’s horizontal slats would be very noticeable in the streetscene, and given the whole building’s elongated form and features such as its string course, they would not appear out of place.

The appellant states that there have been instances of trespassers utilising the car port to gain access to the rear of the house; and that open car ports are not looked upon favourably in Secured by Design due to their associated crime risk. In that regard, the provision of a roller shutter here constitutes a modest benefit.

Policy L7 of the Trafford Local Plan: [name] 2012 sets out that the design of development must be appropriate to its context; that it should enhance the streetscene or the character of the area with regard to matters such as elevation treatment, layout and materials; and that it should reduce opportunities for crime.

As this scheme’s impact on the character and appearance of the host property and the area would be broadly neutral, and as it would reduce the risk of crime, it would not conflict with that policy when considered as a whole. Neither would it conflict with the SPD, nor with the similar approach at Sections 8 and 12 of the National Planning Policy Framework.

Whilst the draft [name] 2022 suggests that integral garages should be avoided in new development, or should be heavily recessed behind the building’s façade, that advice is of limited relevance to this existing car port, and I have little information regarding that document’s status.

Turning to the matter of conditions, in addition to the standard time limit, a condition is necessary in the interests of certainty, requiring that the development be carried out in accordance with the approved plan.

Summing up, the scheme would not conflict with the development plan when considered as a whole and, having regard to all other matters raised, the appeal is therefore allowed.