Fareham Borough Council accused of breaking its own planning guidelines by approving new homes in countryside

The proposal for eight homes on the former Egmont Nurseries in Warsash was the subject of a lengthy appeal process brought by Brook Avenue Residents Against Development (Barad).

The campaign group appealed the Fareham Borough Council's decision to grant planning permission to the High Court in May last year before the case was dismissed.

Barad then applied to The Court of Appeal which was also dismissed in July this year.

As a result of updated Natural England guidance, it was considered necessary to bring the application back to the planning committee yesterday (October 5).

Councillors granted the planning application unanimously.

Reacting to the decision, Barad member Valerie Wyatt said: ‘The planning committee's decision was a mere formality to “rubber stamp” the changes to the nitrogen budget which had to be re-calculated following the updated Natural England guidance issued in March this year.

‘The new guidance incorporated recommendations provided by Justice Jay in the High Court judgement where Warsash residents took legal action against Fareham Borough Council.

‘The proposal for eight houses on a greenfield site in the countryside is in breach of the development plan policies on the location and distribution of new housing.

‘The FBC planning officer himself admits that it breaches these policies and would be harmful to the character of the area.’

The report provided to the planning committee yesterday states: ‘The development would have an urbanising effect which would be harmful to the character and appearance of the countryside.

‘This would be contrary to the aims of Core Strategy Policy CS17, which seeks to ensure development responds positively to and is respectful of key characteristics of an area such as its landscape.

‘In addition, and as mentioned earlier in this report, there is conflict with Core Strategy Policy CS14 which aims to strictly control development outside the defined settlement boundaries and protect the countryside from development which would adversely affect its landscape character, appearance and function.

‘The site is outside of the defined urban settlement boundary and the proposal does not relate to agriculture, forestry, horticulture and required infrastructure.

‘The principle of the proposed development of the site would be contrary to Policies CS2, CS6 and CS14 of the Core Strategy and Policy DSP6 of Local Plan Part 2: Development Sites and Policies Plan.’

Mrs Wyatt added: ‘In allowing development here Fareham Council is going against its own stated aims in the new plan to protect our environment.

‘The site is adjacent to Holly Hill Nature Reserve and should have remained part of the Ecological Network linking habitats in the Lower Hamble Valley.’

After Barad’s July appeal was unsuccessful in the high court in July, Councillor Nick Walker, chairman of the planning committee said that the council takes its ecological responsibilities ‘extremely seriously’.

He said: ‘We have gone to great lengths to develop a strategy that protects the wildlife habitats in the Solent, whilst enabling the homes to be built that the government requires the borough to accommodate.

'The council’s approach to decision making has now been tested on two different occasions by two different courts and found to be sound.’