Appeal 3342509

The appeal is allowed. Planning permission is granted for extension to existing cottage to provide two further bedrooms at [site address] in accordance with the terms of the application [name]/23/4166/FUL dated 27 October 2023 subject to the following conditions:

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

The materials to be used in the construction of the external surfaces of the development hereby permitted shall match those used in the existing building.

The development hereby permitted shall be carried out in accordance with the following approved plans and documents: Site Location Plan, [name], [name], Existing and [name] 04B, [name], [name], Proposed Layout Plan, Existing Layout Plan & Proposed and [name].

The main issue is the effect of the extensions on the character and appearance of the existing building and area.

The appeal site sits within a partly rural location, set to the east of the main body of Barnby. There are some other residential properties located close by but the area is also characterised by fields and planting, some of which is formed of trees bounding [address].

Although identified as a barn conversion, the existing building has a modern appearance, finished with cladding, and fitted with modern residential style windows. It does not make any special contribution towards the rural character of the area.

The extensions proposed would be in keeping with the height, scale and character of the existing dwelling, utilising the same materials and including the same pitched roof design as the main body of the house in the case of the extension to provide the bedrooms. The porch would form a small feature on the front elevation. There is reference to a previous permission for a modest side extension having been granted.

There are trees within the roadside verge on the same side of [address] as the appeal site, adjacent to the area where the extension would be placed. However, these trees are not especially large compared to the fuller specimens on the other side of the road. They are also separated from the appeal site by a roadside ditch which may be restraining root growth towards the appeal site. In any event, even in the case of some limited loss of the roadside trees adjacent to the site of the extension, this would have a limited impact, given that the area has established tree cover given the extensive area of woodland immediately across the road from the appeal site which makes a more positive contribution to the character and appearance of the area.

The appeal proposal would subsequently have no significant adverse effect on the character and appearance of the existing building and area. There would therefore be no conflict with policies WLP8.29 or WLP8.9 of the Waveney Local Plan (2019). Amongst other things these policies require high quality design which reflects local distinctiveness and extensions to dwellings within the countryside that are in keeping with the height scale and character of the original dwelling and those which do not adversely affect the character and appearance of the building, the plot of land on which it is located and the rural setting. The proposed extension should also be considered along with the cumulative impact of existing extensions on the original dwelling.

I note comment from the Parish Council in relation the proposals. I must however determine the proposal in accordance with the development plan and I cannot afford any substantial weight to the matters raised.

Planning permission is granted subject to the standard three year time limit. It is necessary that the development be carried out in accordance with the approved plans for the avoidance of doubt and in the interests of certainty. It is also necessary that the materials to be used in the construction of the external surfaces of the development hereby permitted should match those used in the existing building.

I note the comments from the East Suffolk Environmental Protection Team. However, no detailed justification has been supplied for the inclusion of a contaminated land condition and the Council has not indicated on the appeal questionnaire that such a condition is required. I have therefore not included a condition relating to that matter.

I have not identified conflict with the development plan and there are no considerations, including the Framework1, that indicate that the appeal should 1 National Planning Policy Framework 2024. be determined otherwise than in accordance with it. I therefore conclude that the appeal should be allowed.