A recent Bedford appeal highlights the importance of clearly defining self and custom build development when applying for Permission in Principle.
A Permission in Principle (PIP) application for between one and nine self and custom build homes in Cople, Bedfordshire, has been allowed despite the site being considered contrary to local countryside policies.
The appeal related to land adjacent to 8 Bedford Road, where the Inspector found that the site related more closely to the surrounding countryside than the village and that development would extend built form into the open countryside.
However, Bedford Borough Council had only around 3.35 years of housing land supply, below the five years normally required. There was also an acknowledged shortfall in permissions for self and custom build homes.
The Inspector gave substantial weight to both the general housing need and the shortage of self and custom build opportunities. The potential delivery of up to nine homes, alongside the economic activity generated during construction, ultimately outweighed the identified countryside harm.
A useful lesson about Permission in Principle
The decision also provides an important clarification for those bringing forward self and custom build sites through PIP.
Permission in Principle establishes the location, land use and amount of development, while more detailed matters are considered later through a Technical Details Consent (TDC) application. Planning conditions and Section 106 obligations cannot be attached at the PIP stage.
However, the Inspector found that the description of the development as self and custom build still mattered.
Because the PIP application specifically sought permission for self and custom build homes, a subsequent TDC application would need to remain consistent with that description. The PIP could not simply be used to progress a different type of speculative housing scheme.
The decision therefore provides a useful reminder that the wording and scope of a PIP application should be carefully considered from the outset, particularly where the self and custom build element is an important part of the planning case.
The decision is not a guarantee that countryside sites will be acceptable where there is a shortage of housing or self and custom build plots. However, it demonstrates how evidence of unmet housing and self and custom build need can carry significant weight when considered alongside other planning matters.
