Article 4 Direction - Welby Lane, Ab Kettleby
The Borough Council made a Direction under the Article 4 of the
Town and Country Planning Act 1990, as amended, on 28 February 2011
in respect of an area of land off Welby Lane, Ab Kettleby.
Plan of land subject to the Article 4
Direction
Background
Information has been provided detailing the sale of an area of
land off Welby Lane, Ab Kettleby. It is proposed to sell 8 plots of
land being of varying sizes between 2.5 and 6 acres, a total of
30.83 acres (12.48 hectares) and they are being advertised for
equestrian or leisure uses.
Open agricultural land carries with it diverse
rights to develop it without the need for first being granted a
specific planning permission, ‘permitted development rights’. These
rights can be for means of enclosure, tracks and hardstandings,
small buildings and accesses and even the stationing of a caravan,
dependent on the use that the land is put to.
An Article 4 Direction is a tool which is
available to a local planning authority that can be used to respond
to the particular need to withdraw the permitted development rights
that would otherwise normally apply by virtue of the Town and
Country Planning (General Permitted Development) Order 1995 as
amended (the ‘GPDO’). An Article 4 direction does not prevent the
carrying out of development to which it applies, but instead
requires that a specific grant of planning permission is first
obtained for that development to be carried out. As such the local
planning authority would have control over the development of the
land and be in a position to ensure that development of the land is
acceptable and satisfies the policies of the Development Plan.
Guidance advises that a Local Planning
Authority should consider making article 4 directions only in those
exceptional circumstances where evidence suggests that the exercise
of permitted development rights would harm local amenity or the
proper planning of the area. In deciding whether an article 4
direction would be appropriate, local planning authorities should
identify clearly the potential harm that the direction is intended
to address.
For all article 4 directions the legal
requirement is that the local planning authority is satisfied that
it is expedient that development that would normally benefit from
permitted development rights should not be carried out unless
permission is granted for it on an application. Additionally, for
directions with immediate effect, the legal requirement is that the
local planning authority considers that the development to which
the direction relates would be prejudicial to the proper planning
of their area or constitute a threat to the amenity of their
area.
The subdivision and sale of small plots of
agricultural land is a matter of concern. It has been experienced
elsewhere in the Borough that the portioning up of agricultural
land in such ways can have a serious detrimental impact on the
character and appearance of an area with the erection of fences,
new accesses, tracks and associated paraphernalia which is
attracted by leisure uses of small paddocks and fields.
Experience has shown that there is, on the
balance of probabilities, probable justification for concluding
that there is an immediate threat of the development of fences or
other means of enclosure to sub-divide the land. Officers also
anticipate that the normally undisturbed countryside would be
seriously adversely affected by the inappropriate exercise of
permitted development rights to physically subdivide the land into
plots, creation of hard-standings, accesses, possible temporary
changes of use for up to 28 days and the stationing caravans for
amenity purposes on that land.
Policy OS2 of the Adopted Local Plan seeks to
protect the countryside from inappropriate development. The
Council take the view that it is expedient that these
interests are protected in the circumstances of this case in the
public interest.
It is considered that, on the balance of
probabilities, that the normally undisturbed countryside would be
seriously adversely affected by the inappropriate exercise of
permitted development rights to physically subdivide the land into
plots with fences, walls and gates, the creation of hard-standings,
the construction of vehicle accesses, any temporary changes of use
for up to 28 days, the stationing caravans for amenity purposes on
that land, the erection, extension or alterations of buildings, any
excavations and other engineering operations and the installation
of additional or replacement plant or machinery and such
development should be brought within full planning control. It
is considered that it is in the public interest to require such
development on this land to be subject of full planning
consideration and control enabling the Council, where appropriate,
to grant permission with or without such conditions as may be
appropriate or to refuse permission on the merits of a particular
application.
Accordingly, it is proposed to place a
Direction made under the provisions of article 4(1) of the General
Permitted Development Order 1995, as amended, to control such
development on land.
The Article 4 Direction
A copy of the proposed direction and a copy of
the map defining the area to which it relates can be viewed at the
Melton Mowbray Library, or by clicking on the appropriate link
below:
Notice of Article 4 Direction
Article 4
Direction
Any representations you may wish to
make concerning the direction may be made to the local planning
authority within 28 days of the display of the site notice,
that date being 28th March 2011.
All correspondence should be submitted to:
Mr J Worley
Head of Regulatory Services
Melton Borough Council
Council Offices
Nottingham Road
Melton Mowbray
Leicestershire
LE13 0UL
Or at developmentcontrol@melton.gov.uk
It is proposed that the direction will
come into force, subject to confirmation by the Borough Council, on
8th April 2011.
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