Twinyards Farm Huthwaite Lane Old Blackwell

1. 1.The application has not demonstrated that the rural location for a business is necessary outside settlements by virtue of no assessment of available sites within a settlement to meet the business's needs, no evidence why previously developed land or buildings cannot be utilised at the site, insufficient information on business operations, employment generation and business viability; no evidence why the rural site is necessary to meet the specific needs of the business over and above a settlement location; and no information how it serves the community. This is contrary to Policy S5.1b of the National Planning Policy Framework and to Policy S5.4 of the National Planning Policy Framework, as no exceptional circumstances have been demonstrated that substantially outweigh adverse effects identified to the rural countryside and to land stability/public safety.
2. 2.In the absence of demonstrating the need for a rural business location, the nature of the application for outdoor commercial storage harms the rural appearance of the locality and fails to improve the environment, causing materially different impacts to the existing authorised indoor storage at the site which are contained in agricultural buildings. This is contrary to Policy WC3 (a) of the Adopted 2020 Local Plan, as the proposal fails to improve the local environment; contrary to Policy SC5 (b) of the Adopted 2020 Local 26/00219/FUL Page 1 of 7 Plan as the change of use is not in keeping with the original agricultural character of the land; contrary to Policy E4.2 of the National Planning Policy Framework, as the siting and overall impacts cause harm to the character of the site and its surroundings; and contrary to Policy N2.1 of the National Planning Policy Framework, as the application fails to positively contribute to the natural environment, the landscape character and natural beauty of the countryside. This is as such an identified adverse effect which is not substantially outweighed by the benefits of the development as exceptional circumstances.
3. 3.In the absence of an appropriate assessment and any possible mitigation, the application has not demonstrated acceptable impacts on land stability and to public safety by virtue of the development being located directly above a mine entry and underground coal mining within the Coal Mining High Risk Referral Area. This is identified as causing a potentially significant risk to surface stability and to health and safety, being potentially dangerous to site operatives and any visitors to the site. It not demonstrated that the site is safe and suitable for the development proposed contrary to Policy SC14 of the Adopted 2020 Local Plan, which requires development proposals to not be permitted unless it can be demonstrated any unstable land issues are addressed by appropriate mitigation measures (if required) to prevent adverse impacts on human health; and contrary to Policy P2 parts1 and 3 of the National Planning Policy Framework, which states that sites proposed for development should be suitable for their proposed use taking into account risks arising from land stability including activities from mining, and that adequate site assessment information, prepared by a competent person, should be provided to inform land stability considerations. This is as such an identified adverse effect which is not substantially outweighed by the benefits of the development as exceptional circumstances.

From the council's decision notice.

Postcode

DE55 5HN

Parish

Blackwell Parish

Date validated

1 September 2026

Consultation end

24 September 2026

Applicant

Private applicant

Case officer

Mr Mark Penford

Documents

16