In determining whether or not a new home in the countryside would be "isolated" for the purposes of paragraph 55 of the National Planning Policy Framework, does one only consider if it would be physically isolated or does one also have to consider if it would be functionally isolated relative to services and facilities? The Court of Appeal, upholding the High Court and endorsing the Secretary of State's position, has ruled that physical isolation is the only test. The judgment has obvious and important implications for housing development in the countryside right across England. The draft revised NPPF uses the "isolated" term in paragraph 81.
Stephen Whale successfully represented the Secretary of State in the Court of Appeal, and Gwion Lewis successfully represented the Secretary of State in the High Court.
For a copy of the judgment,
click here.
