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Potential lifeline for Banbury and Hanwell gap campaigners?
06/08/2024
Council officers are planning to challenge a similar Planning Inspector decision through the courts
Campaigners who failed in a bid to stop building in the fields between Banbury and Hanwell may be thrown a lifeline. Cherwell District Council appears ready to challenge a recent Planning Inspector decision which went against the Council – and they may do the same for the Warwick Road ruling.
Last week the Planning Inspector overturned a local planning decision and allowed an application by the Vistry Group for 170 houses in the gap between Banbury and Hanwell. Part of that decision was based on the Inspector’s view that Cherwell District Council doesn’t have a five-year housing land supply.
The Council maintains it has granted enough planning applications to stay ahead of what is legally required over the next five years.
But the Warwick Road decision was one of a number of recent appeals where the Planning Inspector hasn’t agreed and, in finding Cherwell below the minimum requirement, overturned a refusal by the Planning Committee.
The Council is now planning to challenge the Planning Inspector’s decision in the courts as it appears the Inspector’s calculation used a merged requirement for both the Cherwell district and Oxford City. With Oxford City council not being able to demonstrate its own five-year land supply the overall merged figure also fell below the minimum.
The court case will focus on the Inspector’s decision to allow 230 homes north of Camp Road in Upper Heyford. The Council is currently taking advice as to whether to challenge the Warwick Road decision.
At last week’s planning meeting Council officer Paul Seckington told Councillors: “We’ve had the decision where the inspector felt it was appropriate to have a single supply incorporating Oxford’s need, therefore saying that we didn’t have a supply.
“Similarly the recent decision at Warwick Road also implied that the inspector felt that we should have a single supply, and therefore we wouldn’t have a five year supply across the district.
“We are challenging the Heyford decision on legal grounds. We think the inspector has erred in their interpretation of the NPPF [National Planning Policy Framework] and we are taking advice whether we want to challenge the Warwick Road decision as well.”
The first stage of the process will not be heard until late in November. By then Labour’s plans for increased housing targets in the district are likely to have moved forward.
Published: by Banbury FM Newsteam