# 54 Meltham Road, Huddersfield

- **Decision:** dismissed, 15 September 2026
- **Decided by:** Planning Inspector: John Morrison (on recommendation of Appeal Planning Officer S Manson)
- **Authority:** Kirklees (Yorkshire and the Humber)
- **Appeal reference:** 6009626
- **Application reference:** 2026/62/90733/W
- **Procedure:** written-representations
- **Development:** Subdivision of terraced house into two apartments
- **Homes:** 1
- **Site context:** inside-settlement
- **Green Belt:** no
- **Framework applied:** August 2026 NPPF
- **Determinative policies:** S4, P3
- **Development plan policies:** Kirklees Local Plan 2019 LP24, Housebuilders Design Guide SPD 2021
- **Main issues:** living conditions of future occupiers
- **Tags:** s4-within-settlement, s4-substantially-outweighed, living-conditions, transitional-no-consultation, appeal-planning-officer, small-scheme, tier-2

## Summary
Splitting a Huddersfield terraced house into two flats was dismissed. The basement living room of Apartment 1 would have very poor daylight and outlook. Under S4, the P3 harm (substantial weight, "permanent and enduring") substantially outweighed the moderate benefit of one extra home (DL ¶13-14).

## What made the difference
A single window behind a porch facing a retaining wall. Whether the flats met NDSS did not matter, because the daylight and outlook failure alone was enough (DL ¶9).

## Policy findings
- **P3: fail (substantial weight).** basement living room lit by one window behind a porch facing a retaining wall - poor daylight and outlook (DL 6-9, 13)
- **S4: fail.** one net additional unit, moderate weight, substantially outweighed (DL 12-14)

## Key facts
- Net gain of one dwelling; apparent undersupply acknowledged but not quantified
- Framework changes judged immaterial - no further consultation (DL 3)

## Sources
- https://appeal-planning-decision.service.gov.uk/comment-planning-appeal/appeals/6009626
- https://appeal-planning-decision.service.gov.uk/published-document/7d473b7d-49e3-42bc-b82f-75d3c32b7023

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Source: https://planningdistilled.org/research/england/nppf-navigator/decisions/PINS-6009626.html

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