Planning Application Details

Insufficient ecological information has been submitted to support this application. Essential ecological information is required to fully assess the impacts of development on important ecological receptors (e.g European protected species) and determine whether the proposal will likely result in a net loss of biodiversity. In the absence of this information, the application is judged to be contrary to standing advice, Natural England guidance, paragraph 99 of Circular 06/2005, Policies ENV2 and ENV3 of the SOLP, and paragraphs 180 and 186 of the NPPF.

The proposed car park extension will introduce hard surfacing within the root protection area of trees situated close to the southern site boundary. These trees provide a significant positive contribution to the character of the conservation area. The submitted tree protection plan proposes a no dig solution to install the hard surfacing within this area. The council's tree officer has confirmed that this would not be feasible due to the topography of the site confirming that the proposed car parking area would damage the trees. The proposed development would lead to the loss of important trees protected within the conservation area. The application is therefore considered to be contrary to policies DES1, DES2, ENV1 and ENV8 of the South Oxfordshire Local Plan.