Taplow
Our client owns a 1.25ha horticultural nursery in the green belt which, over the years, has used permitted development rights to erect agricultural buildings. The buildings have been used for wholesale and retail sale of products associated with the nursery, and we obtained planning permission for the sale of a greater range of ancillary goods than those produced on site.
However, the occupier introduced sales unrelated to that permission and subsequently the local planning authority took enforcement action against the unauthorised activities. We won on appeal, and the Inspector concluded that the activities on site represented a mixed use rather than an agricultural use.
Following this success on appeal, we have made representations to the Council’s ‘call for sites’, green belt assessment and their emerging local plan, advocating the removal of the site from the green belt (together with two adjacent sites – total area 3.7ha). This outcome was successful, and the area was taken out of the green belt.