Appeal 3363490

The appeal is allowed and planning permission is granted for dormer to front elevation and roof window at [site address] , Wannock, Polegate, [postcode] accordance with the terms of the application ref WD/2024/2570/F, 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: 1781-00 and 1781-01 [name].

The main issue is the effect of the proposed development on the living conditions of adjoining occupiers.

The appeal property is a bungalow that is situated within an estate of other bungalows of generally similar form, though the attached bungalow has a front dormer. The layout of the property and neighbouring bungalows differs from the wider estate, in that they front a short shared front access path which I saw has garden areas to individual properties straddling either side of that path. It is evident that these front garden areas are used as amenity areas by occupiers of each property, along with their rear garden area.

The front dormer to the appeal property would look towards the front garden of [site address] , and there would be oblique views towards the front gardens of the adjoining bungalows. Those front garden areas are already overlooked by the ground floor windows of the row of properties, the existing first floor dormer to No. 27, and by any users of the path that runs through the gardens.

Due to the existing situation I consider there would not be any material increase in the amount of overlooking caused by the proposed dormer to No. 25. The dormer would serve a bedroom and the propensity for views from such a room would be less than a primary living space in the dwelling; this reinforces my opinion that the dormer would not lead to any loss of privacy. A previous proposal would have seen a balcony to the dormer, which would have facilitated a greater propensity for overlooking, so with the removal of that element of works I consider any objection relating to loss of privacy no longer remains.

To the south of the appeal property and its neighbours are the rear gardens of 8 and [address]. The existing dormer to No. [address]. The distance between the proposed dormer and that garden, intervening vegetation, and the intention of the dormer to serve a bedroom with no balcony mean that there would not be any material loss of privacy to occupiers of those properties.

The position and design of the dormer reflect that seen on the neighbouring bungalow, so would be an appropriate addition to the property.

The proposed development would therefore not lead to any actual or perceived loss of privacy to adjoining occupiers, and so would be consistent with saved Policies EN27 and HG10 of the Wealden Local Plan 1998, and [name] SPO13 and Policy WCS14 of the Wealden Core Strategy Local Plan 2013, which seek to ensure development is of high quality, does not unacceptably impact on adjoining occupiers, and provides attractive living environments. It would also be consistent with the objectives of good design set out in the Wealden Design Guide Supplementary Planning Document 2008 and in the National Planning Policy Framework.

Planning permission is therefore granted. I have attached conditions suggested by the Council requiring matching materials and for works to be undertaken in accordance with the approved drawings, to ensure a satisfactory appearance to the development.