Emery Planning has achieved a successful outcome in an application to add a full additional storey to a 2-storey dwelling within the North Cheshire Green Belt, as permitted development, using the ‘Class AA’ prior approval procedure. As agent for the application, we provided a robust case in the context of case law and precedents to convince Cheshire East Council that prior approval should be granted to increase the height of the existing detached dwelling from 2 to 3-storeys. This is a rare approval of such an application in the Green Belt (as far as we know, the first in Cheshire East) and one that our client was exceptionally pleased with!
The former farmhouse, in a generous plot, is not seen in the context of other houses. The council accepted that the change to the appearance of the dwelling would not be harmful, and whilst not featuring in close proximity to the application site, 3-storey farmhouses of comparable design are not alien in the Cheshire Countryside. In combination with other permitted development opportunities, the prior approval provides a very significant uplift in the size of the dwelling.
