HEATHLAND HOUSE, HEADLEY DOWN
A small, single-storey cottage in Headley Down, East Hampshire, has been replaced with a one-and-a-half-storey home in stone, brick and timber cladding. The first application was refused in early 2020. The same design was approved later that year, once a permitted development fallback had been established.
Why it was refused
The site is in the countryside, outside the settlement boundary, in the gap between Headley Down and Headley and Arford. Saved Policy H16 limits a replacement home there to 50% more than the original house. The council's officer found the design to be of high quality, but refused the application in March 2020 on size alone.
Building the fallback
Rather than shrink the design, the project turned to what the house could already do without planning permission. In September 2020 the council granted:
A Lawful Development Certificate for a side extension, porch and rooflights.
A Lawful Development Certificate confirming the existing carport.
Prior approval for an 8 metre single-storey rear extension.
Together they set a lawful fallback of almost 288 square metres, close to the size of the refused design.
Approved the second time
The same design, with only small changes to the windows, was submitted again. In November 2020 the council approved it, accepting that the owners could otherwise build a house of almost the same size under permitted development. The new home is about 298 square metres over one and a half storeys.
We designed the house and produced the drawings, managed the project through planning alongside a planning consultant, made further applications ourselves, and have managed it since.
What this means for your project
A refusal for size is not always the end. If your house has unused permitted development rights, they may change the baseline the council has to consider. The certificates and prior approvals have to be granted first, and the fallback has to be realistic, so it pays to plan the order before you apply.
See the finished house on the Heathland House project page at Alchemy House of Design.
Had an application refused for its size? Book a planning surgery for £95 plus VAT, or call us on 01428 892198.
