- Decision
- dismissed, 1 October 2026
- Decided by
- Planning Inspector: M Harrison
- Authority
- Blaby (East Midlands)
- Appeal reference
- 6009910
- Application reference
- 25/0987/FUL
- Procedure
- written representations
- Development
- Erection of a two-bedroom dwelling and detached double garage to the rear of 12 Victoria Road
- Homes
- 1
- Site context
- inside settlement, garden land
- Green Belt
- No
- Framework applied
- August 2026 NPPF
- Determinative policies
- S4(1)
- Development plan policies
- Blaby District Local Plan Core Strategy 2013 CS2, Blaby District Local Plan Delivery DPD 2019 DM1 (local)
- Main issues
- character and appearance; living conditions
Summary
A two-storey house and double garage in the rear garden of a semi-detached house on a corner plot in Whetstone was dismissed. It would break the pattern of houses fronting the street with long rear gardens, and the fixed obscure glazing needed to protect neighbours would leave future occupiers with a poor outlook and very small gardens. Under S4 the limited benefit of one home, without a five-year supply, was substantially outweighed.
Issues and findings
- Transition. "I have not sought the views of the main parties on the revised Framework as the policies relating to the main issues of this appeal have not significantly changed" (DL ¶3).
- Character: significant harm. "A two-storey dwelling together with a double garage would fill a significant proportion of the rear garden of No.12 with development, harming the existing sense of space around dwellings" (DL ¶6).
- Living conditions: harm. "Only having clear glazing and opening first floor windows on the front elevation with no outlook to the sides or rear of the property would provide a sub-standard experience for occupiers of the property" (DL ¶10).
- S4(1): FAIL. "The addition of one dwelling would be limited in this context and is therefore substantially outweighed by the adverse effects" (DL ¶14).
Planning balance
S4(1) in two paragraphs. The harms are found against local plan policies only; no Framework design or amenity policy is named, and the DP3(3) question is not asked (DL ¶8, ¶12–14).
What made the difference
The site was too tight: protecting the neighbours required glazing that made the house itself unsatisfactory. A single-storey building, in keeping with the outbuildings found in neighbouring gardens, would not have raised the same issues.
Transferable points
- Local-plan-only harms to character and living conditions can substantially outweigh one home under S4(1), even without a five-year supply (DL ¶13–14).
- Obscure, fixed glazing that solves overlooking can create a separate harm to future occupiers (DL ¶9–10).
Policy findings
Policy codes are those of the National Planning Policy Framework (August 2026) unless a development plan is named.
| Policy | Finding | Weight | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| S4(1) | fail | one dwelling without a five-year supply is a limited benefit, substantially outweighed by significant character and living-conditions harm (DL 13-14) | |
| DP3 | conflict | mapped: Framework design policy not cited; two-storey house and double garage in a rear garden conflict with the pattern of semi-detached houses with long gardens; significant harm under local CS2 and DM1 (DL 5-8) | |
| L2(1)(d)(ii) | conflict | mapped: Framework not cited; all first-floor windows except the front would be obscure-glazed and fixed, and gardens very small; poor living conditions for future occupiers under local DM1 (DL 9-12) | |
| HO7 | benefit | limited | one dwelling; Council cannot show a five-year supply (figure not stated); benefit "would be limited in this context"; HO7 not named (DL 14) |
Key facts
- Corner plot at the entrance to Charnwood Avenue; the house would face Charnwood Avenue but take access from Victoria Road (DL 5-7)
- Description amended from a self-build dwelling to a two-bedroom dwelling during the application (DL 2)
- Parties not consulted on the August 2026 Framework; relevant policies "have not significantly changed" (DL 3)
Sources
This note is one of the decisions behind the NPPF 2026 Navigator, which shows how each Framework test has been applied across all the decisions in the database. Also available as Markdown.