Construction of detached garage with office above

Appeal Decision Site visit made on 12 January 2026 by D R Kay BA Dip.Arch RIBA an Inspector appointed by the Secretary of State Decision date: 20 February 2026 Appeal Ref: APP/Y3940/D/25/3370324 The Coach House, Stoford, Salisbury, Wiltshire SP2 0PJ • The appeal is made under section 78 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 (as amended) against a refusal to grant planning permission. • The appeal is made by Mr & Mrs B Lawrence against the decision of Wiltshire Council. • The application Ref is PL/2025/02836. • The development proposed is the construction of detached garage with office above. Decision 1. The appeal is allowed and planning permission is granted for the construction of a detached garage with office above, at The Coach House, Stoford, Salisbury, Wiltshire SP2 0PJ in accordance with the terms of the application, Ref PL/2025/02836, subject to the conditions in the attached schedule. Preliminary Matters 2. The appeal site is not separately listed but is protected as a curtilage listed building due to its historic association with the adjacent Stoford Farmhouse Listed Building. I am therefore mindful of the statutory duties placed on decision-makers by section 66(1) of the Planning (Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas) Act 1990 (as amended) (hereafter referred to as the Act) to have special regard to the desirability of preserving listed buildings or their settings. Main Issue 3. The main issue is the effect of the appeal development on the character and appearance of the local area bearing in mind the special attention that should be paid to the desirability of preserving the setting of the curtilage listed building The Coach House and the nearby Grade II listed building Stoford Farmhouse. Reasons 4. Stoford Farmhouse was listed as Grade II in May 1986 (Ref:1318733), including all buildings within its curtilage, including the appeal property now known as The Coach House. The farmhouse dates from the mid C18 with late C19 alterations. It is two-storeys in height in an L-shaped plan and with pebble-dashed and painted walls and gable ended roofs with feature chimney stacks to their ends and red clay tile coverings to the roof. There are a mix of two-storey and single storey extensions to the side and rear, in a mix of gabled and hipped formats. Windows are 16 pane timber sashes to its principal elevations, with smaller 12-pane sashes to the rear service wing. Appeal Decision APP/Y3940/D/25/3370324 2 5. Historically, Stoford village comprised a line of farmsteads associated with South Newton Manor, owned by the Earl of Pembroke after the dissolution. The South Newton Tithe map of 1844 illustrates the L-shaped plan of Stoford Farmhouse as plot 52 and the adjacent rectangular plan of the Coach House to the south as plot 51, recording the owner of both plots as the Earl of Pembroke, and with a tenant occupier. Given the above, I find that the significance of the listed building and its setting, insofar as it relates to this appeal, is derived partly from the quality of its architectural detail, and partly from its historical and social significance within the village and its links with South Newton Manor and the Earl of Pembroke. 6. The appeal property was the former coach house to the adjacent Stoford Farmhouse. However, the property was separated and converted to a dwelling following planning permission in 1995. The building is a coursed red brick and flint building with a rectangular one and a half storey main building under a gabled pitched roof finished in natural slate. There is a single storey pitched roof section of building to the north gable, together with a detached one and a half storey height red brick and flint, hipped gabled building, which sits at right angles to the north of the Coach House. This is separated by around a metre, the gap between buildings providing access to the appeal property’s rear garden. This detached building is also roofed in natural slate, and provides both storage accommodation for the appeal dwelling, and garage facilities for the adjacent Stoford Farmhouse. 7. Both properties share a single vehicular access to the A36 Warminster Road, which splits when off the highway, into two separate access driveways. The boundary between the adjacent properties, is formed by a dense evergreen hedge and high timber close-boarded fence. There are high evergreen hedges and close boarded timber fences to the boundaries of the two properties with the highway. The parking for the appeal property is currently on a gravelled forecourt in front of the property. There are clear views of the Coach House from the public realm, through the driveway access, for both passing pedestrians and vehicle drivers. However, the location of the existing parking area means that the principal elevation of the Coach House would often be substantially obscured by parked vehicles. 8. The proposal would introduce a detached pitched and hipped gable roofed building within the front garden area of the appeal property. It would provide a double garage at ground level with office accommodation in the roof space above, accessed by an internal staircase. The materials would be natural slate to the roof and horizontal lapped timber to the walls, having a rural aesthetic, which would be characteristic in the area. The Council acknowledge the design of the proposed building, of itself, to be acceptable. 9. The proposed garage block would be located well forward of the principal elevation of the Coach House, with an extended gravelled driveway in front of it, providing vehicular access. Use of the garage and the gravelled access in front of it for parking of vehicles, potentially would remove parked vehicles from in front of the property, opening views of its principal elevation from the public realm, through the access driveway point. This would assist in conserving the significance of the Coach House and preserving its setting. 10. Whilst the proposal would be visible from this viewpoint, due to its location, height, mass, materials and design, it would be well separated from, and subservient to, the Coach House, and would be in keeping with a rural aesthetic. Views of parked cars could be appropriately screened by evergreen hedging alongside the new Appeal Decision APP/Y3940/D/25/3370324 3 access area. I therefore find it would not harm the character and appearance of the host dwelling or the surrounding area and would, therefore, be acceptable. 11. The Council raise concerns that the proposal would detract from how the Coach House is viewed as part of the grouping of buildings associated with Stoford Farmhouse. However, at my visit, it was evident that due to the separation distance between the two properties, the established mature boundary separation between them, and the significant difference in the materials, scale and the architectural style of the Coach House from that of Stoford Farmhouse, that the two properties would not, in practical terms, be viewed as being related to one another. 12. They would, partially due to the development that has already taken place to the Coach House, already appear to be two separate buildings, from different timeframes in history. They would be experienced as the last, or first, properties in a row of detached residential properties, forming ribbon development situated along the highway, as one exit’s or enters the village. 13. Having regard to my duty under section 66(1) of the Act, and the relevant heritage asset policies in the National Planning Policy Framework (the Framework), based on the evidence before me, my observations on site, and for the reasons highlighted above, I find that the proposal would not harm either the significance of, or the setting of, the Grade II Stoford Farmhouse listed building as a heritage asset. Further, I find that the proposal would relate well to the Coach House in location, scale and detail, and for the above reasons, would not harm the setting of the Coach House as a curtilage listed building and heritage asset. 14. For the above reasons, I conclude that the proposal would accord with Polices 57 and 58 of the Wiltshire Core Strategy (2015), which require, among other things, development to have a high quality of design which responds to the value of, and which protects and conserves, the historic environment. Other Matters 15. The appeal site is located within the catchment area of the River Avon Special Area of Conservation (SAC). This is a designated Habitat Site, recognised for its National and International importance for nature conservation. It hosts protected priority habitats with water courses of plain to montane levels with floating vegetation often dominated by water-crowfoot, and species including Atlantic Salmon, Brook lamprey, Sea lamprey, Bullhead and Desmoulin’s whorl snail. 16. This protected Habitat Site is under significant pressure from increasing phosphorous nutrient pollution. The River Avon SAC is listed as a phosphorous sensitive catchment area under the Water Industry Act 1991, due to evidence of high levels of phosphorus in its water catchment environment. Development within its catchment area needs to demonstrate nutrient neutrality. 17. Having examined the proposal, due to its use as a garage at ground level with an office use to the room in the roof space above, with no foul drainage requirement, it would not contribute to the phosphorous load in the River Avon SAC. On this basis, I find it would not be likely to have a harmful significant effect on the SAC and its qualifying features. Accordingly, it is not necessary for me to carry out an Appropriate Assessment under Regulation 63 of the Conservation of Habitats and Species Regulations 2017 (the Habitats Regulations) (as amended), or to consult Natural England. Appeal Decision APP/Y3940/D/25/3370324 4 Conditions 18. I have had regard to the conditions suggested by the Council and the comments provided by the appellant. Where necessary I have amended the wording, in the interests of precision and clarity, and to comply with the advice in the Planning Practice Guidance and the Framework. 19. In addition to the standard time limit for implementation, in the interests of certainty, I have attached a condition specifying the approved plans. 20. I have not applied the suggested condition requiring materials used in the external surfaces of the development permitted, to match those of the existing building, as this would result in a change to the external appearance of the proposal which would make it more visually prominent. A condition requiring the submission of samples of all the materials to be used in the external envelope of the proposal, for approval by the Council, has been applied in lieu. 21. A condition controlling the use of the proposal to one incidental to the residential use of the main dwelling, and restricting its future use for habitable accommodation, for commercial purposes or forming a separate planning unit is necessary to ensure the character of the area, residential amenity and for nutrient neutrality on the River Avon SAC. Conclusion 22. For the reasons set out above, I conclude that the appeal proposal accords with the development plan, read as a whole, and that there are no material considerations, including policies in the Framework, that justify determining other than in accordance with the development plan. Therefore, the appeal should be allowed. D R Kay INSPECTOR Appeal Decision APP/Y3940/D/25/3370324 5 Schedule of Conditions 1 The development hereby permitted shall begin not later than three years from the date of this decision. 2 The development hereby permitted shall be carried out in accordance with drawing numbers: CH/25/001 - Location Plan, CH/25/002 - Proposed Site Plan, CH/25/003 - Proposed Plan & Elevations. 3 No development above ground level shall take place until samples of all external facing materials have been submitted to and approved in writing by the local planning authority. The development shall be carried out in accordance with the approved sample details. 4 The development hereby permitted shall not be used other than for purposes incidental to the dwelling known as The Coach House. It shall not be used for habitable accommodation or for commercial purposes and shall remain in the same planning unit as The Coach House. *** End of Schedule***