This is the third application for a barn in this location this year, and the second from this applicant. Their previous application for this site 3295/23/FUL was withdrawn. The third and earliest application was to legalise an agricultural barn built in other than the approved location to be used for equestrian purposes.

In our objection to this latest application we pointed out the applicant had previously used the fact they owned this 7.5 acre site to help support an application they had submitted to support a previous barn extension on a separate and larger site they own 1.3 miles away. Consequently we argued that there appeared no justification for yet another barn in a highly
prominent location and that the LPA should review the buildings at both locations and independently justify the claimed agricultural requirement for this latest proposal.

We also noted that when the third and earliest application was consented that too was on the basis of agricultural need and conditioned specifically for that purpose. However a mere two years later a retrospective application was received to permit the building to be used for equestrian purposes in breach of condition 3 of planning permission 0371/21/FUL.

How, we wondered, were consent to be given to this latest application, would the LPA prevent something similar from happening again?

Unfortunately and not altogether unsurprisingly the case officer concluded 'sufficient justification has been provided to demonstrate that there is an agricultural need for the proposed building', and recommended approval subject to 'The agricultural building hereby permitted shall be removed from the site and the land reinstated to its former condition within three months, if within 10 years of substantial completion the building becomes redundant to agricultural use and the Local Planning Authority have not previously granted planning permission for an alternative use.'

In other words, provided planners can be persuaded, there is little to stop the building being used for other than agricultural purposes at some point in the future.