Some advice on Green Belt Planning

[AndyL999]

I have a house in Green Belt (not an area of outstanding beauty) that we purchased in 1982, in 1984 we obtained planning permission to extend it from a 2 bed to a 4 bed (70% increase) however in fairness there were brick buildings demolished and the plot is 0.6 acre. The house is now 180 sq M.

 

Now some 37 years later we decided that we want to spruce the house up change the frontage from dormer windows to gable ends, change the interior etc. The plans we got drawn up used the existing walls and footings and the roof replaced. We finally ended up with a new design same living area, same footprint and the same cubic capacity.

 

Planning has just got back to me by email essentially saying that this current planning assessment would be against the original building size prior to us extending in 1984 and that it will be recommended for refusal.

 

So although we are not making the house any larger, we will be refused and if we wanted to demolish the existing house and build a new one that would have to be sized to the original house as purchased in 1982.

 

This does not seem logical to me as the house currently has planning permission as it stands, am I missing something here?

[Temp]

Converting dormers to gables can make a house look much bigger in elevations even though the floor area is similar or unchanged. If this isn't the problem i think I would press on with the application and appeal if necessary. 

 

I've not heard of the planers ever trying to significantly reduce the size of a house compared to an existing house. I suppose it might have happened when a house was knocked down before making an application to build new - because then there isnt an existing house anymore. 

[AndyL999]

Thanks Temp, I'm really stuck as although my new design is no bigger in every aspect (footprint/cubic capacity/floor area), so it's not an extension it is a reshaping, the key of the problem is that although the current house is legit and has had planning permission they will not grant this planning permission as they will use the original small building built in 1932 as the datum. In fact here is their statement "the planning assessment of the proposal would be against the ‘original building’ (rather than the existing building)".

 

I now plan to seek professional advice to see if they can take it further but now that's further expense but more importantly more delays.

 

I posted here in the hope that somebody else has had the same problem, I keep thinking that they really don't have a basis to refuse, but I guess planners are on another planet?

[scottishjohn]

I suspect they want to keep it on the same footprint as original one ,as now you are replacing the whole house ,you could maybe do it in two parts --eg original foot print then apply for and extension on that  when the build is in progress .

seen a others do that 

 maybe time for a planning consultant ?