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A conjoined inquiry into appeals by Persimmon Homes and CALA Homes into the refusal of South Oxfordshire District Council to grant their applications for 140 home and 58 home residential developments in Chinnor, South Oxfordshire, has adjourned until October 2018 to hear evidence on the implications of the housing related provisions of the revised NPPF. The issues in the appeals include:
1) The relevant requirement figure for assessing whether SODC has a five year housing land supply and in particular whether it should include (at least the uncontroversial element of) SODC's share of meeting Oxford City's unmet needs having regard to the Oxfordshire Growth Deal.
2) The deliverability of several sites relied upon by SODC as part of its claimed 5 year housing land supply.
3) The landscape impact of the proposed developments (and in CALA's case, heritage impacts and highways impacts also).
4) Whether the Persimmon proposal amounts to 'infill' to which policy support is given by the SODC Core Strategy Policy CSR1 and Chinnor Neighbourhood Plan Policy CH H1.
5) The proper interpretation of the Chinnor Neighbourhood Plan, and in particular whether the absence of allocations combined with a policy that 'supports' infill is to be taken as meaning that an unallocated site which is not infill is contrary to the Plan.
The inquiry sat for 9 days in July 2018 and has been adjourned until October 2018 for a further week where, amongst other things, evidence and submissions will be heard on the implications of the revised NPPF on the above issues. Charles Banner acts as sole counsel for Persimmon Homes, instructed by Lee Crawford, Group Planning Manager at Persimmon. CALA and SODC are represented by QCs.