Description
Outline application for erection of 3 detached dwellings, with scale, layout and means of access to be determined at this stage: and landscaping and external appearance to be determined at reserved matters stage (access and layout revised to take account of protected trees as shown on amended plans and arboricultural information received 27th September 2019 and additional driveway information received 22nd May 2020).
Conditions / Refusal Reasons
The application site comprises a residential plot lying in an area of countryside, known as Harpsden Woods, beyond the edge of the built-up area of the nearby settlements of Lower Shiplake and Harpsden, which is not identified for development in the Development Plan. As it would not lie within those settlements, the proposed development would not represent infill development as defined by the South Oxfordshire Core Strategy. Instead, the proposal would result in the consolidation of loose-knit buildings, at the application site, Wildwood and other dwellings to the west, leading to the encroachment of built form into Harpsden Woods. This would detract from the rural character and appearance of the site and its surroundings beyond the landscape boundary of the adjacent Thames Farm development. Furthermore, it would provide a limited number of homes in a location that is not particularly accessible to services and facilities. As such, the proposed development would be environmentally and socially unsustainable, contrary to Policies CS1, CSS1, CSR1, CSEN1 and CSQ3 of the South Oxfordshire Core Strategy, Policies G2, G4, C4, D1 and H4 of the South Oxfordshire Local Plan 2011, Policy H4 of the Joint Henley and Harpsden Neighbourhood Plan and advice contained within the NPPF and NPPG.
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