Thurrock Borough Council – v – Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government and Ward [2016] EWHC 200 (Admin) 09 February 2016

A Planning Inspector granted Mr Ward planning permission for a temporary period for a Gypsy site in the Green Belt.

The local authority appealed against this decision on three grounds:-

(i) The Inspector had failed to give sufficient weight to the harm to the Green Belt; (ii) The Inspector had failed to take into consideration conflict with one of the purposes of the Green Belt, namely to prevent encroachment into the countryside; (iii) The Inspector applied the wrong test with regard to “special circumstances” (very special circumstances will not exist unless the potential harm to the Green Belt by reason of inappropriateness, and any other harm, isclearly outweighed by other considerations – see the National Planning Policy Framework).

In dismissing the appeal, HHJ Sycamore found that there was no evidence to support any of the grounds of appeal. He stressed that there should not be an overly detailed analysis of a decision letter.