Agenda and minutes

To receive apologies for absence.

Apologies for absence were received from Councillors Chris Brine, Jason Bullingham, Victoria Gray, Helen Fenton, Loraine Patrick and Mark Ryder.

To receive Declarations of Interest in relation to planning matters.

There were none.

To approve the minutes of the meeting held on 14 June 2022.

The minutes were not able to be printed due to technical issues, they would be discussed at the next meeting.

(Note: For access to information purposes, the background papers for the applications listed in the above schedule are the application itself and subsequent papers as listed in the relevant file.)

Representations were received and taken into account by the Committee in respect of Applications:

Proposed two storey extension with single storey link and a detached oak framed garage with associated new driveway and access.

The Planning Officer and the Specialist Conservation Officer introduced both of the reports together and explained that they would take all questions on either application at the end of the introduction.

The Specialist Conservation Officer gave a brief description of the site which included:

·        The dwelling was a standalone weavers cottage dating from the 18^th century which sat in a large open parcel of land that was largely unaltered since the 19^th century.

·        The site sat within the Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB).

·        The current dwelling was situated within the settlement boundary of France Lynch but much of the land within the application site did not.

·        The dwelling had previously been reordered into a domestic building with the exception of the donkey stable on the side of the property.

·        The lean-to was erected in circa 1922 although it showed signs of being reordered since then.

The Planning Officer summarised the proposal which was for:

·        The removal of the historic lean-to to be replaced with a single storey link building leading to a double storey extension.

·        New access adjacent to the existing access.

·        Removal of existing garage.

The Planning Officer sumarised the reasons for refusal which included:

·        The principal Local Plan policies HC8 and ES10.

·        Section 66(1) of the Planning (listed buildings and conservation areas) Act.

·        Due to the scale, massing and design of the proposal, it was felt that it would cause harm to the character and appearance of the host dwelling and its setting.

·        Paragraph 202 of the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) deemed the proposal to be less than substantial harm (higher end).

Councillor Watson spoke as a Ward Member for the area. She asked the committee to support the application for the following reasons:

·        The applicant received no prior notification that the building could become listed when they purchased the property. This only came to light during pre-planning discussions with Stroud District Council (SDC).

·        After the grade II classification had been awarded, it made it difficult for Officers to approve changes that would normally not have been an issue.

·        The current proposal responded to as many heritage points as possible such as maintaining specific features and utilising certain materials.

·        The applicant purchased the property with a promise to keep it as a family home, in order for it to be usable as such, there was a lot of work to be done. Extending the property would be a better option than letting it fall into disrepair or the surrounding land being further developed.

·        The current proposal maximised the views of the valley without any adverse implications.

·        The building had a sharp drop to one side which would have been a more preferable location for the extension but due to the uneven ground it wouldn’t have been possible.

·        The unaltered building would not be viable to live in as a family home.

·        Detailed visual recording could preserve the building in its current state and remain as a permanent record to be accessed by all, which  ...  view the full minutes text for item DCC.072

Internal alterations, including the insertion of stairs and reconfiguration of plan form, the addition of a two-storey extension with single storey link and alterations to the boundary wall.

The item was introduced and received questions with the above item.

Councillor Brown proposed and Councillor Schoemaker seconded.

The Head of Development Management summed up the refusal reasons as shown on page 31 of the reports pack.

After being put to a vote, the Motion was carried unanimously.

RESOLVED To refuse permission.