Description
Demolition of existing care home, and the erection of a new purpose-built care home facility (Use Class C2), with associated works including parking and landscaping.
Conditions / Refusal Reasons
In the absence of an acceptable site-specific flood risk assessment and drainage strategy, and due to the failure to pass the sequential test, the proposals fail to demonstrate that the proposed development would not be at risk of flooding from all sources; that it is the only available site compared to others at a lower risk of flooding; that the development would be made safe for its lifetime; or that it would not increase flood risk elsewhere. The proposals are therefore contrary to policy EP4 of the South Oxfordshire Local Plan and paragraphs 170, 173-175 and 181-182 of the NPPF.
The proposals fail to provide for safe access by sustainable travel, walking, cycling and public transport and, therefore, the development would be highly reliant upon private car use; as such the proposals are contrary to policies TRANS 2, TRANS 4, and TRANS 5 of South Oxfordshire Local Plan.
Due to the nature of the local highway network, narrow, unlit carriageways, access via Mill Road and Mill Lane by construction traffic would present an unacceptable harm to the safety and convenience of highway users contrary TRANS 4 and TRANS 5 of South Oxfordshire Local Plan.
The height, bulk and extent of the proposed building and its urban appearance, which would be at odds with the existing rural character, would result in significant adverse impacts on landscape character and on views, including from the Thames Path National Trail and views that are identified as locally important in the neighbourhood plan, contrary to policies ENV1, DES1 and DES2 of the South Oxfordshire Local Plan and policies SV9, SV11 and SV12 of the Shiplake Neighbourhood Plan.
The proposed development is considered an inappropriate response to site constraints including flooding, arboriculture and character, and due to the bulk, scale, and massing of the proposed building, combined with its urban appearance, and loss of a mature Oak tree the development would be out of keeping with the character of the existing site and surroundings and would result in harm to the character and appearance of the site and surrounding area contrary to policies DES1 and DES2 of the South Oxfordshire Local Plan and policies SV3, SV7 and SV24 of the Shiplake Neighbourhood Plan.
There is insufficient information to demonstrate that the proposed development would not result in harm to protected species, specifically bats and great crested newts, and in the absence of robust assessment of and accounting for baseline habitats in the statutory biodiversity metric, there is insufficient information to inform an assessment of whether a 10% biodiversity net gain can be achieved in accordance with the Environment Act 2021, and the development would be contrary to Policies ENV2 and ENV3 of the South Oxfordshire Local Plan.
In the absence of detailed energy efficiency measures for the proposed development, there is insufficient information with the application to demonstrate the proposals would achieve the required reduction in carbon emissions, contrary to Policy DES10 of the SOLP.
In the absence of a completed S106 legal agreement, the proposal fails to secure infrastructure necessary to meet the needs of the development. As such, the development would be contrary to the National Planning Policy Framework and policy INF1 of the South Oxfordshire Local Plan 2035
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