Land At Rocklands, Boreham Lane, BN27 1RS

1. 1.The application site occupies a remote countryside location outside any defined development boundary where new housing is resisted and where future occupiers would be heavily reliant on the private car to access local and day-to-day services. The limited benefit arising from the provision of one dwelling would not outweigh the harm arising from the unsustainable location of the development. Even if the tilted balance in paragraph 11(d)(ii) of the NPPF were engaged, the adverse impacts arising from the site's location and conflict with the spatial strategy would significantly and demonstrably outweigh the housing benefit. The proposal is therefore contrary to saved Policies GD2, EN1 and DC17 of the Wealden Local Plan 1998; Spatial Planning Objectives SPO7 and SPO13 and Policies WCS6 and WCS14 of the Wealden Core Strategy 2013; and paragraphs 7, 83, 109, 115 and 117 of the NPPF.
2. 2.By virtue of the constraints of the site including its elongated nature and elevated position, heavily vegetated existing character and visibility from public vantage points, including from the public right of way to the south east, the introduction of a dwelling of the scale and siting proposed, would result in a visually prominent, visually discordant form of development which would result in future pressure on retained trees which would have a detrimental impact on the Coastal Levels landscape within the locality. Therefore, the development would be contrary to saved policies EN11, EN12 and EN27 of the WLP (1998), Strategic Planning Objectives SPO13 and SPO14 and policy WCS14 of the WCS (2013) and the guidance contained within the NPPF.
3. 3.By virtue of the proposed layout and its close relationship with retained trees, the development would constitute a cramped form of development which would fail to provide adequate external amenity space for future occupiers free from unacceptable overshadowing, leaf litter and damp conditions. The proposal would therefore provide a poor standard of residential amenity, contrary to saved Policy EN27 of the Wealden Local Plan 1998, Strategic Planning Objectives SPO13 and SPO14 and Policy WCS14 of the Wealden Core Strategy 2013, Chapter 7 and Section 11 of the Wealden Design Guide 2008, and the guidance contained within the NPPF.
4. 4.Safe access into and out of the site would not be achievable having regard to the substandard visibility splay to the south, the oblique alignment of the access for pdnRS.docx northbound vehicles entering the site, and the absence of satisfactory tracking for an appropriately sized vehicle. The submitted information also fails to demonstrate that adequate on-site parking and turning can be provided to enable vehicles to enter and leave the site safely in a forward gear. The development would therefore introduce unacceptable highway safety hazards, contrary to saved Policy TR3 of the Wealden Local Plan 1998 and paragraph 115 of the NPPF.
5. 5.The application site lies within the hydrological catchment/zone of influence of the Pevensey Levels SAC, Ramsar site and SSSI. The submitted drainage strategy fails to demonstrate that surface water runoff, and any foul or grey water drainage where relevant, would be subject to an adequate treatment train prior to discharge from the site. In particular, whilst the scheme proposes SuDS features, it does not demonstrate that runoff would receive adequate two-stage treatment, or an equivalent evidenced form of water quality mitigation, to intercept, treat and attenuate pollutants arising from the proposed development before runoff enters the receiving drainage network. In the absence of such information, there remains a credible hydrological pathway for contaminants, including sediments, hydrocarbons, metals, nutrients and other urban pollutants, to discharge from the site and affect the water-dependent habitats and species of the Pevensey Levels. The Local Planning Authority, as competent authority, is unable to conclude beyond reasonable scientific doubt that the development, either alone or in combination with other plans or projects, would not adversely affect the integrity of the Pevensey Levels SAC/Ramsar site. The proposal is therefore contrary to Regulation 63 of the Conservation of Habitats and Species Regulations 2017 (as amended), paragraphs 187, 193, 194 and 195 of the National Planning Policy Framework 2024, Policy WCS12 of the Wealden District Core Strategy Local Plan 2013, and saved Policies EN1 and CS2 of the Wealden Local Plan 1998.
6. 6.In the absence of a District Level Licence or adequate survey information to demonstrate that Great Crested Newts would not be harmed, the Local Planning Authority cannot be satisfied that the development would safeguard the favourable conservation status of this protected species. The proposal is therefore contrary to Policy WCS12 of the Wealden Core Strategy 2013 and paragraphs 187 and 193 of the NPPF.

From the council's decision notice.

Postcode

BN27 1RS

Application type

Full

Scale / size

Small

Parish

Wartling

Date validated

13 April 2026

Consultation expiry

23 May 2026

Consultation start

27 April 2026

Consultation end

23 May 2026

Target decision date

8 June 2026

Agent address

Ms Cerys Atchison 167-169 Great Portland Street London W1W 5PF

Statutory period

56 days

Advertisement expiry

23 May 2026

Site notice start

27 April 2026

Documents

25