Rooks Nest Paddock, Stevenage Road, Walkern, Hertfordshire

Application No 3/20/0717/FUL

Change of use of land from agricultural/equestrian to residential and erection of a new two bedroom dwelling with associated parking at Rooks Nest Paddock, Stevenage Road, Walkern, Hertfordshire.

CPRE Hertfordshire object to this latest proposal for residential development in the Rural Area Beyond the Green Belt. Previous application 3/18/2336/FUL was refused by the Council and application 3/19/1086/FUL was both refused by the Council and dismissed on appeal.

The applicant now moves the proposed development to a third location within the farm complex, but the principles which led to the appeal dismissal remain.

As with the previous applications, this proposal will insert a residential building and domestic curtilage into an agricultural area outside of the Walkern settlement boundary, contrary to District Plan Policies DES4, GBR2 and VILL1. Similarly, it does not comply with Policy 9 of the Walkern Neighbourhood Plan. The site was put forward for consideration in the Council’s Strategic Housing Land Availability Assessment and rejected at that stage as unsuitable for residential development.