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70 Whitley Street, Reading, RG2 0EQ

PL/26/0666Full planning permissionRefused
Full

Refused on 20 July 2026

Council decision: RefuseDelegated (officer decision)5 reasons for refusal

Approximate location: the centre of the postcode, not the exact property.

Proposal

Erection of 2no. single-storey one-bedroom dwellings

Received
19 May 2026
Decision level
Delegated (officer decision)
Ward
Katesgrove Ward
  1. Received19 May
  2. Validated19 May
  3. Consult.12 Jun
  4. Target12 Jun
  5. Decided20 Jul

Decided in 62 days (council typically 56)

About this application

This is a full planning application at 70 WHITLEY STREET, READING, RG2 0EQ. Reading has handled 449 applications of this type. This one was decided in 62 days, 6 days longer than Reading's typical decision time. The site is in 2 listed buildings nearby. There has been 1 other application at this address. In the past year there have been 50 applications across Katesgrove Ward. We hold 771 applications in total for the RG2 postcode area.

89% of full applications at Reading Borough Council were approved. Across all application types, the council typically decides in about 8 weeks (median).

Based on decided applications received in the last 3 years.See what's approved near your address

Why it was refused

  1. The proposed development, by lack of heritage related statements and assessments has failed to demonstrate that the proposal would not harm the setting of the heritage assets, being the former Wellington Arms public house, and the Christchurch Conservation Area. Due to its location, the proposed development would sever the link between the rear of the site and the heritage asset removing its setting. In addition, the proposal would obscure views from the path leading to the development from ‘The Tank’ towards the Conservation Area, and the former Wellington Arms. The location and obscuring of views into the Conservation Area would harm the setting of the former Wellington Arms PH (Building of Townscape Merit), and the setting of the Christchurch Conservation Area, contrary to Policies EN1, EN3, EN4, and EN6 of the Reading Borough Local Plan 2019, and Paragraphs 207, 208, 210, and 214 of the NPPF December 2024 (as amended).
  2. The proposed development, by way of its layout, site coverage, use of excessive hardstanding, boundary treatments, and insufficient landscaped areas, would result in a cramped overdevelopment of the site which fails to accommodate built form and landscaping in a manner that enhances the character and appearance of the area. The proposed development is, therefore, contrary to policies CC7 and EN14 of the Reading Borough Local Plan 2019 and paragraphs 96, 129, 131, 135 and 136 of the NPPF December 2024 (as amended).
  3. The proposed development, due to the minimal size and siting of the gardens, combined with fencing, would fail to provide adequate and functional outdoor private amenity space for future occupiers, harmful to their amenity. The proposed development is, therefore, contrary to Policies CC7, CC8, and H10 of the Reading Borough Local Plan 2019 and paragraphs 96, 135 and 198 of the NPPF December 2024 (as amended).
  4. The proposal due to its layout and proximity to neighbouring high boundary walls on all sides fails to provide a suitable outlook from the dwellings. This would result in a detrimental impact to the living environment of future occupiers. The proposed development is therefore, contrary to Policies CC8 of the Reading Borough Local Plan 2019 and paragraphs 96, 135 and 198 of the NPPF December 2024 (as amended).
  5. The proposed development due to its failure to provide sufficient landscaping and resultant biodiversity net loss on site, fails to maintain and enhance the green

From the council's decision notice.

Application details

Postcode
RG2 0EQ
Application type
Full planning permission
Scale / size
Small

Planning application dates

Date validated
19 May 2026
Consultation expiry
12 June 2026
Consultation end
12 June 2026
Target decision date
12 June 2026
Application expires
14 July 2026

Planning decision

Statutory period
56 days

Additional information

Planning Portal ID
PP-14943754

Site constraints

Checking the site
2/3
Council recordsAppealsFlood risk

Designations at the address point. Ones next to the site may also apply.

  • Flood zone 1: Low probability (rivers and sea)

Not published by this council, so not checked: Article 4 directions. Ask the council if these matter.

Possibly incomplete for this council: tree preservation orders.

Also checked, none recorded (22)

flood storage areas, conservation areas, listed buildings, green belt, scheduled monuments, World Heritage Sites, World Heritage Site buffer zones, registered parks and gardens, registered battlefields, Heritage at Risk entries, nutrient neutrality catchments, national parks, National Landscapes, SSSIs, Special Areas of Conservation, Special Protection Areas, Ramsar sites, ancient woodland, national nature reserves, local nature reserves, heritage coasts and brownfield registers.

A guide only, from official open data; it is not a planning search. Flood zones cover rivers and sea, not surface water.

Data © Crown copyright and others · sources and licences

Contains public sector information from planning.data.gov.uk (MHCLG and local planning authorities), licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. © Crown copyright and database right 2026.

© Historic England 2026. Contains Ordnance Survey data © Crown copyright and database right 2026. The Historic England GIS Data contained in this material was obtained on 2026-11-03. The most publicly available up to date Historic England GIS Data can be obtained from HistoricEngland.org.uk.

© Natural England copyright. Contains Ordnance Survey data © Crown copyright and database right 2026.

© Environment Agency copyright and/or database right 2026. All rights reserved. Flood Map for Planning, Open Government Licence v3.0.

Contains Ordnance Survey data © Crown copyright and database right 2026.

Source: Office for National Statistics licensed under the Open Government Licence v.3.0. Contains OS data © Crown copyright and database right 2026.

Source: Reading

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