GB - Arsenal Football Club Plc v Secretary of State for Communities And Local Government & Anor

Judgment

Mr Justice Cranston :

Introduction

This is a challenge by the claimant, Arsenal Football Club Ltd (“the club”), under section 288 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 (“ the 1990 Act ”) to a decision of David Smith, the Secretary of State’s Planning Inspector, contained in a decision letter of 16 January 2014. After a 6 day inquiry Mr Smith refused the club’s application under section 73 of the 1990 Act to vary the conditions which Islington London Borough Council (“the council” or “Islington”) had attached to two previous planning permissions for the Emirates Stadium. The application was to increase from 3 to 6 the number of music concerts which may be held each year at the stadium and to allow the number of major events to be held on a Sunday to increase from 1 to 3.

The claim before me is confined to the single ground that the Inspector was in error under section 38(6) of the Planning and Compulsory Purchase Act 2004 in addressing whether the club’s application complied with the development plan for the area. Section 38(6) provides that the determination of a planning application “must be made in accordance with the [development] plan unless material considerations indicate otherwise”.

Development plan

The relevant development plan for Islington at the time of the decision consisted of the Islington Core Strategy (adopted 2011); Islington’s Development Management Policies (adopted 2013); and the London Plan (adopted 2011).

Policy CS14 of the Islington Core Strategy supports retail and shops for economic development and the enhancement of existing cultural uses. It reads, in part:

“Retail and services

A. Islington will continue to have strong cultural and community provision with a healthy retail and service economy providing a good range of goods and services for the people who live, work and study in the borough. This will both support the borough’s economic development and enable people to shop locally. The council will protect and enhance the existing arts and cultural uses and encourage new arts and cultural uses, particularly within town centres.”

Islington’s Development Management Policies provide for the location of entertainment activities. DM4.2 states that entertainment and night-time activities are generally inappropriate outside town centres, but where proposed outside town centres applicants will need to demonstrate that such uses will not result in adverse impacts, including cumulative impacts, as assessed in rela