Tavener's planning permission was reinstated. None of Billing's reasoning was irrational or 'vulnerable in any other way to criticism', the judge concluded. Such an interpretation of policy 14 would act as an 'unrealistic and unnecessary constraint' on decision-making, the judge added.Īlthough policies 14 and 5 'pointed in different directions' when it came to assessing the merits of the proposal, they were of equal force and neither was dominant over the other, he ruled. However, there was nothing to indicate an intention that policy 14 should have 'automatic primacy' over other development plan policies, he said. A word such as 'normally' or 'generally' had not been inserted to soften the expression 'will not be permitted'. The judge acknowledged that the wording of policy 14 was unqualified. Upholding Cornwall's appeal, the judge, who was sitting with Lords Justice Lewison and Leggatt, ruled that the council's contention that the proposal was in accordance with the development plan when read as a whole was both realistic and, as a matter of law, correct.Īlthough Tavener's plans were 'to some degree' in conflict with Policy 14, they found clear support in other development plan policies, particularly policy five which encourages high quality, sustainable, developments which create jobs and promote tourism, the judge said. Ruling on Cornwall Council's appeal against that decision, Lord Justice Lindblom noted that the central issue in the case was whether the council was wrong to grant consent for a development which it found to be in conflict with development plan policies for the protection of AGLVs but compliant with other relevant policies, including a policy encouraging development of tourism. In quashing the permission in May last year, Judge Mark Ockelton noted that the proposal was in direct conflict with policy 14 of the Restormel Local Plan, which states that developments which would cause harm to AGLVs 'will not be permitted'. William Corbett, leader of St Mawgan in Pydar Parish Council's planning group, mounted a successful High Court judicial review challenge to the council's decision. On the strength of her report, the council granted Tavener planning permission in February 2018, subject to a number of conditions, which included that the static caravans and lodges must be used only for tourism and not as permanent homes.

The development would provide much-needed jobs and support sustainable economic growth in the rural area, she said. In giving limited weight to the impact on the AGLV, Billing pointed out that the expansion of existing tourism facilities was supported by both local and national planning policies. In her report to the council's planning committee, its senior development officer Michelle Billing acknowledged that the proposal would have a slight or moderate impact on the AGLV.īut, as the park is in a valley, there would be little effect on distant views, she said, and any harm would be at localised level. The development would adjoin the existing park, which houses 39 static caravans and 100 pitches for caravans and tents. Steven Tavener, owner of the Sun Haven Valley Caravan Park at Mawgan Porth, near Newquay, proposed stationing 15 static caravans and a similar number of holiday lodges on a 1.6-metre field. The Appeal Court has upheld Cornwall Council's view that the tourism and economic benefits of permitting expansion of a caravan park outweighed the harm that it would cause to the Watergate and Lanherne Area of Great Landscape Value (AGLV).

Sun haven caravan park mawgan porth