Speers v The Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government & Ors
2014
ADMINISTRATIVE COURT
UK
CORAM
- MR JUSTICE HICKINBOTTOM
Areas of Law
- Administrative Law
- Property and Real Estate Law
2014
ADMINISTRATIVE COURT
UK
CORAM
AI Generated Summary
The Claimant challenged an Inspector's decision to grant planning permission for extending a motor repair garage, citing increased noise pollution and impact on residential amenity. The High Court reviewed the case under Section 288 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990, rejecting all four grounds of the claim and affirming the Inspector's decision.
Judgment
Mr Justice Hickinbottom :
Introduction
This is an application under Section 288 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 (“ the 1990 Act ”), in which the Claimant seeks to quash a decision dated 25 March 2014 of an inspector appointed by the First Defendant Secretary of State, namely Jennifer Vyse Dip TP DipPBM MRTPI (“the Inspector”), to allow an appeal against the decision of the Second Defendant local planning authority (“the Council”) dated 21 May 2013 and to grant planning permission to extend a motor repair garage and retrospectively to extend rear parking at 22 New Street, Upton upon Severn, Worcestershire (“the Site”).
Before me, Satnam Choongh has appeared for the Claimant, and Andrew Deakin for the Secretary of State; and I thank them at the outset for their assistance.
The Background
The Site falls within the Upton upon Severn Conservation Area, which forms the historic core of the town and comprises four distinct character areas of which the Site lies in the most central, Character Area 1. In paragraph 6 of her decision, the Inspector describes this area as “an eclectic mix of historic buildings dating from the Tudor period to modern day infill”. “As a consequence”, she continues, “the streetscape contains a wide variety in terms of design and scale which gives the area its unique character”.
The Claimant lives at 18 New Street. 18 and 20 New Street are Grade II listed 17th century buildings, refronted in red brick in the 18th century. They lie close to the Site, separated from it by 20A New Street, a lower building which is not listed. The garden of the Claimant’s property extends behind 20 and 20A New Street, and thus adjoins the side boundary of the Site.
The premises on the Site were formerly a Wesleyan Methodist Chapel, but, since 1926, they have been used as a motor repair garage trading as “Shipps Garage”. The Third Defendant (“Mr Perry”) is the current owner and operator of the garage. The building, which is not listed, lies towards the front of the plot and there is access to the garage workshops via double doors at the front, direct onto New Street. There is no vehicular access to the building from the rear; although there is some car parking space for the garage there, accessible by a lane to the west of the Site. Some of that space is authorised for parking; but some that has in fact been used for parking – the part behind 26 New Street – is not.
The premises have been altered significantly to facilitate the curre