Land opposite Willow House, 400871 A435 To Green Hatch Farm, Cowley, GL53 9NJ

Land opposite Willow House, 400871 A435 To Green Hatch Farm, Cowley, GL53 9NJ — Cotswold District Council — Appeal Decision Site visit made on 29 November 2022 by A J Sutton BA (Hons) DipTP MRTPI an Inspector appointed by the Secretary of State Decision date: 12 December 2022 Appeal Ref: APP/F1610/W/22/3303346 Land opposite Willow House, 400871 A435 To Green Hatch Farm, Cowley GL53 9NJ • The appeal is made under section 78 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 against a refusal to grant planning permission. • The appeal is made by New View Direct Ltd against the decision of Cotswold District Council. • The application Ref 21/04496/FUL, dated 6 December 2021, was refused by notice dated 16 May 2022. • The development proposed is a new agricultural barn to replace existing stables. Decision 1. The appeal is dismissed. Main Issue 2. The main issue is whether the proposed development would be appropriate in this location, having regard to its effect on the character and appearance of the Cotswolds Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB). Reasons 3. The appeal site is close to a valley floor, bound by pastureland that rises steeply to the north, and to its south, by a single valley bottom lane. It is near to the edge of a stone-built village which occupies a relatively secluded location towards the end of the valley.

Land opposite Willow House, 400871 A435 To Green Hatch Farm, Cowley, GL53 9NJ — Cotswold District Council — Appeal Decision Branching from the core of this village, is a scattering of dwellings, but these are generally focussed on the south valley wall. The north side of the valley, near to the appeal site, is predominantly grassland on a steep slope. 4. While there are standalone structures on the north side of the valley, they are intermittent and few in number. I saw a barn on this side of the lane but located at the immediate edge of the village core, that building is seen as part of the built form of the settlement. There is also a stable block northwest of the appeal site, but this is single storey, with a relatively low profile. As such the area immediately surrounding the appeal site has an undeveloped quality, and this along with the other landscape characteristics and special qualities outlined above, contribute to the scenic beauty of this part of the Cotswolds AONB.1 5. The existing stable block on the appeal site is in a poor state of repair. However, like the stable block to the northwest, it is a single storey.

Land opposite Willow House, 400871 A435 To Green Hatch Farm, Cowley, GL53 9NJ — Cotswold District Council — Appeal Decision 1 Refs: Cotswolds Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty Management Plan, National Character Area 107 Cotswolds and the Cotswolds Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty Landscape Character Assessment: Escarpment: High Wold Valley Upper Churn Valley Character Type https://www.gov.uk/planning-inspectorate

Land opposite Willow House, 400871 A435 To Green Hatch Farm, Cowley, GL53 9NJ — Cotswold District Council — Appeal Decision 1 Refs: Cotswolds Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty Management Plan, National Character Area 107 Cotswolds and the Cotswolds Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty Landscape Character Assessment: Escarpment: High Wold Valley Upper Churn Valley Character Type https://www.gov.uk/planning-inspectorate

Land opposite Willow House, 400871 A435 To Green Hatch Farm, Cowley, GL53 9NJ — Cotswold District Council — Appeal Decision Appeal Decision APP/F1610/W/22/3303346 Consequently, this existing shallow pitched roof structure also has a low profile in this landscape, and this ensures it is a relatively neutral feature that does not significantly disrupt this generally undeveloped, picturesque setting. 6. The proposal would replace the existing building with a barn. Although the new structure would be slightly shorter in length, it would have a larger footprint than the existing stable block. The new barn would be set back from the lane a greater distance than the stable, but the plans show that this would only be by a small amount. Moreover, despite being designed with low eaves and to be lower in height than a Dutch barn previously proposed at the appeal site2, the pitched form of the new barn would be substantially higher than the existing low-profile structure that it would replace. 7. The steeply rising ground would visually contain the proposed building and it rooflights at its north, and the hedge bounding the lane would provide a degree of screening at the south of the site.

Land opposite Willow House, 400871 A435 To Green Hatch Farm, Cowley, GL53 9NJ — Cotswold District Council — Appeal Decision However, the sizeable new barn would sit higher than the lane, and at this elevated position the increased mass and pitched roof would appear a considerably more prominent built form at the site than the existing stable. 8. The design of the building is agricultural in style and in this respect may be suitable in rural locations. However, in this rural location, which is part of a sensitive and valued landscape, it would appear a large, standalone structure, unrelated to a farmstead or the scattered development at the edge of the village. In this regard it would appear out of context in this predominately pastural landscape, and in turn this would significantly erode the undeveloped quality of this part of the AONB. 9. The appellant proposes to improve the landscaping at the boundary and around the access of the site, and this could be secured by condition. However, this would unlikely screen the upper portion of this large, new structure or its roof. The resultant substantial visual change at this site would be noticeable from the lane near to the site and from properties on the south side of the valley, and in this regard the harmful effect would be localised.

Land opposite Willow House, 400871 A435 To Green Hatch Farm, Cowley, GL53 9NJ — Cotswold District Council — Appeal Decision However, the National Planning Policy Framework (the Framework) states that great weight should be given to conserving landscape and scenic beauty of AONBs which have the highest status of protection in relation to these issues, and, for the reasons outlined above, this proposal would fail to conserve the existing landscape quality and scenic beauty of this area. 10. The principle of replacing the existing structure may not be in dispute, but this is subject to the acceptability of the proposed replacement in respect to other issues. I have found that this proposal would not be acceptable having regard to its harmful effect on the landscape. 11. The appellant proposes to use the barn for storage of agricultural equipment and hay harvested from nearby fields. Even, if I was to accept that the existing stable was not capable of accommodating these needs, and that an increase in footprint was necessary, the evidence before me does not demonstrate that this harmful development is the only solution open to the appellant to address these needs. 2 Ref: 17/04406/FUL https://www.gov.uk/planning-inspectorate 2

Land opposite Willow House, 400871 A435 To Green Hatch Farm, Cowley, GL53 9NJ — Cotswold District Council — Appeal Decision Appeal Decision APP/F1610/W/22/3303346 12. My attention is drawn to an existing barn near the appeal site. But this is located south of the lane and close to other buildings. The stable to the northwest of the appeal site may well have a larger footprint, but that is a single storey structure and distinctly different to this proposed barn. These examples are not directly comparable for these reasons and have not altered my findings in this case. 13. I therefore find that the proposed development would not be appropriate in this location, having regard to its effect on the character and appearance of the Cotswolds AONB. It would conflict with Policies EN1, EN2, EN4 and EN5 of the Cotswold District Local Plan. These collectively require that development will be permitted which accords with the Cotswold Design Code, and state in determining proposals within the AONB the conservation of the natural beauty of the landscape, its character and special qualities should be given great weight. 14.

Land opposite Willow House, 400871 A435 To Green Hatch Farm, Cowley, GL53 9NJ — Cotswold District Council — Appeal Decision It would be inconsistent with considerations set out in the Cotswold Design Code relevant to large agricultural buildings, which amongst other matters, state that the placement, scale and massing of the new building should respond to their landscape context, and new farm buildings should generally be integrated within an existing farmstead. It would also be contrary paragraph 176 of the Framework in respect to conserving the natural environment. Other Matters 15. I note that the Council’s officer recommended, in a report to the planning committee, that the proposal be granted planning permission. However, the Council is not bound by this recommendation. The decision made by members of the committee is supported by reasons for refusing permission, and these reasons have been substantiated by relevant local plan policies. 16. No issue has been identified by the Council in respect to ecology or biodiversity subject to conditions. However, this should be an expectation of development so this is a neutral factor in this case. 17. For the reasons stated above, having regard to the development plan taken as a whole, and all relevant material considerations, including the Framework, this appeal is dismissed.

Land opposite Willow House, 400871 A435 To Green Hatch Farm, Cowley, GL53 9NJ — Cotswold District Council — A J Sutton INSPECTOR https://www.gov.uk/planning-inspectorate 3