http://www.homebuilding.co.uk/community/blog-post/microcosm-local-planning#comment-10852
How web sites work these days. I am in the running for a home building award for the Goldwyre House which caused me to look further onto your web site. Planning indeed! Let me tell you my story. We took 10 years to get permission for our house build. It is a sensitive site and the planners wanted to make sure the design was not too ostentatious. Our first design was refused being too "exotic". The senior planning officer though had his own opinion "I will never allow you to build on this site" rings in our ears. However, it’s not the prerogative of one person and the appeals reporter stated that the principle of a house build could not be refused. We went to work on the design and what you see on the competition page is what we built. That process wasn't straightforward but it was reasonable and we built a working relationship with the planning officer. A new broom was at the top of the planning team as well and things seemed to be much better all round in Midlothian, not just for us. However what happened next is the reason we called our house RP9 which stands for Rural Policy No 9 which defines the specific locational need and protection of river valleys in Midlothian. A local group campaigned hard to say that RP9 was being overlooked and our house, despite now having permission, should be restricted in size and any non-material variations be brought to the fore and raised to a level of National importance. I kid you not about the National importance. The Esk Valley Trust wrote to the planning department to say that our project made depressing reading and that the whole issue should be raised at a National level. They contacted the Green party. They mounted an un neighbourly campaign and an Amenity Society went to town on complaints running into 10's of pages per letter. When they had no joy with our house and a non-material variation they picked up on unauthorised items - a fence (replacement), a sitting out area (replacement), path widening! And steps into the steep bank of the woodland for access! The latter items should probably never have been submitted into a planning application but we went ahead with the advice of the planning officer to capture these minor items into one overall application and to put a stop to all the local complaints. The planners recommended approval. The pressure group mounted its attack via the local councillors and at a committee meeting (not a delegated matter) the meeting refused permission by 8 to 6. We weren't surprised and went to appeal. The appeal over ruled the council and the report was a joy. the campaign to make RP9 work against was over turned by the appeal in a few short sentences stating "how could these items be any more locationally specific" which contrasted widely with the reams of paper and dedication of a few to put their own slant on the meaning of a planning policy.
I have a blog site that I created at the time of great angst in my life. Our house and woodland feature on it. Take a look. There are more planning stories in there.
http://watertowerwood.blogspot.com/
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