Inspector quashes enforcement action on Seaford conversion
A Seaford home will be allowed to remain as apartments, after a conversion secured retrospective planning permission at appeal.
In a decision published on Friday (November 6), a planning inspector retrospectively approved the conversion of a dwelling at 33 Sherwood Road into three separate units.
Lewes District Council had issued an enforcement notice in February last year, which ordered this unauthorised conversion to be undone.
The appellant, listed as Michael Langley, had challenged the enforcement notice on the grounds the conversion should be granted planning permission.
Ultimately, the planning inspector shared this view, opting to quash the enforcement notice and grant retrospective planning permission.
In their decision notice, the inspector wrote: “The benefits of the proposal are the creation of three new dwellings (net increase of two) which are of a smaller size and suitable for occupation by single person households.
“The site is in a sustainable location within a settlement where there is established public transport infrastructure and proximity to local shops and services. This weighs substantially in favour of granting planning permission.
“I have identified the benefits of granting permission for this proposal above and have been unable to identify any adverse effects of the development that would attract sufficiently substantial weight so as to warrant a refusal of planning permission.”
As part of the decision, the inspector noted how both parties agreed that not all of the apartments would meet the Nationally Described Space Standards.
The inspector took the position that they could not consider this matter in detail as it had not been raised as part of the enforcement notice.