Agenda item

To determine the application.

Tom Donnelly presented the report to members.

Members received a presentation, in accordance with the public participation procedure, from Mr Deptford, the applicant, and Shanna Jackson, the agent. Mrs Jackson explained that the proposal is for an occupational dwelling for the applicant and his family to reside in to enable the applicant to be on site 24 hours a day, 7 days a week in order for him to be able to maintain the local drainage system within the area. She explained that the second reason for refusal relates to visual impact and the perceived harm to the countryside and, in her view, this is subjective given the fact that the dwelling is proposed to be located next to the existing buildings and set against the backdrop of these buildings and located within a small cluster of development, in her view, the dwelling would not cause visual harm to the character and appearance of the countryside.

Mrs Jackson referred to the third reason for refusal which relates to flood risk and she made the point that given that there is an essential need for the dwelling to be in this specific location and that it will facilitate the maintenance of a local drainage system and that an acceptable Flood Risk Assessment has been provided the proposal passes both the sequential and exception tests.

Mr Deptford stated that he would like to refer to the first reason for refusal and explained that the dwelling is required to support his business, adding that he is a fourth generational farming business and his son has just returned to the family business to ensure that it continues. He explained that he has recently expanded the farming operations to approximately 890 hectares of owned, rented and contract farmland, and none of the land has any available housing.

Mr Deptford explained that he has farmed the land where the proposed dwelling is located since 1942 and originally there were three farms which his grandfather combined, and it had several dwellings on the farm and up until the 1970s there were five houses on the farm. He added that during the 1970s these houses were all demolished as they were badly built and suffered from significant subsidence, making the point that there is a history of housing on the farm.

Mr Deptford explained that he has a sustainable ongoing business and due to expansion, the demands to be on the farm in person have increased significantly over the last four or five years. He made the point that he has over 150 lorry movements a year, loading and unloading of produce as well as numerous stores which require constant checking along with the issues of theft, trespass and hare coursing.

Mr Deptford added that one of the reasons he needs to be located on the farm is due to the private drainage board which is one out of only six in the whole of the Middle Level and his is the largest which incorporates 340 hectares which drains his land and small parcels of land next door. He added that the farm is drained by a single pump and like many in the area is 70 years old and is becoming increasingly demanding to maintain and this is particularly relevant due to its age and changing weather patterns.

Mr Deptford stated that due to increasing demands in winter months and in particular requires daily weed cleaning for up to an hour a day and vigilance in case of breakdown as water levels can rise extremely quickly. He expressed the view that a breakdown of the pump would be extremely concerning which was the case during the winter when the pump broke and resulted in the installation of three temporary diesel pumps to control the water until the pump was fixed which took four weeks.

Mr Deptford explained that during this time it meant that he had to visit the farm four times a day to check the water levels were not rising and this means he was on site at 5am and 11pm throughout the Christmas period which was not pleasant. He stated that this is a job which requires expertise and knowledge which not many other people have, and he explained that the implications of a major breakdown are obvious and would include flooding of his land, some of his neighbours and that would result in a loss of income for both of them.

Mr Deptford made the point that he can commit to farming in the March area, and operates a viable multigenerational farming business which is a new generation involved for the future and an ongoing need to be present on the farm both for business, land and drainage management.

Members asked the following questions:

·         Councillor Marks asked how much water is pumped off of the land within a season? Mr Deptford explained that he would not know an actual figure, but explained that it is a lot. Councillor Marks stated that most pumping stations that were 70 years old would have had a house connected to it because they had a full-time pump man on site, and he can see the necessity to be on site. Mr Deptford stated many years ago there used to be a diesel pump there and a member of staff would be there all night running the pump and now the pump is electric.

·         Councillor Mrs French asked Mr Deptford to confirm what he farms on his land? Mr Deptford stated that he farms oilseed rape, wheat, sugar beet, beans, peas and mustard.

·         Councillor Connor asked Mr Deptford to confirm where he lives now in relation to the pumping station? Mr Deptford explained that he lives in the middle of Wimblington. Councillor Connor made the point that it is quite a distance. Mr Deptford stated that he spends an hour and a half to two hours a day driving backwards and forwards and does 30,000 miles a year managing the farm by driving backwards and forwards.

·         Councillor Marks asked Mr Deptford how much farmland he farms around the area? Mr Deptford confirmed that there is 670 acres there and a further block further down the road of 200 acres.

Members asked officers the following questions:

·         Councillor Sennitt Clough asked for clarification from officers as to why the application was recommended for refusal and asked whether there could not have been an agricultural tie to the building rather than a refusal. David Rowen stated that yes there could have been, but due to the policies at both local and national level, there is a requirement for there to be a demonstrated essential need for an agricultural worker dwelling on any site and unfortunately what has just been presented to the committee was not included within the application submission. He added that unfortunately that due to that lack of information and the lack of demonstration of an essential need is the reason why the application is before the committee with a recommendation of refusal.

·         Councillor Connor stated that it is disappointing and due to the fact that Mr Deptford and Mrs Jackson have provided to the committee some relevant information, there may well have been a different officer’s recommendation to consider.

·         Matthew Leigh stated that members need to be very aware that what has been presented to them verbally must be given significantly less weight than to what has been provided formally as part of an application to them by officers.

·         Councillor Mrs French stated that she has known the farming family of the Deptford’s for many years and with the information that members have she would think that a favourable approval would be successful.

Members asked questions, made comments and received responses as follows:

·         Councillor Mrs French stated that after listening to the information which has been provided by Mr Deptford and Mrs Jackson, in her view, the application should be supported. She added that she is a member of 11 drainage boards, and she is well aware of the problems that the drainage boards do have with their pumps and it is not uncommon for the Chairman of the drainage boards to be up in the middle of the night as well. Councillor Mrs French added that she is aware that many of the drainage board pumps are old and need significant investment and the Council do pay Middle Level a precept to keep Fenland safe from flooding and last year that figure was £2.4 million. She added that if there is another private drainage board that are maintaining their pumps independently then she fully understands why they need to be closer.

·         Councillor Benney stated that he knows the size of the farm that Mr Deptford operates as well as the drainage board and it is disappointing that the information that was provided to them in the verbal presentation did not form part of the written application. He added that part of the committee’s responsibility is to take into consideration local circumstances and local knowledge and in view of that fact he feels that the application should have a recommendation to approve, although he does take into consideration the point made by the Head of Planning with regards to giving minimal weight to the verbal presentations. Councillor Benney expressed the view that in this case, members should be including their own personal knowledge into the decision-making process, and he feels that the application should be supported.

·         Councillor Sennitt Clough stated that she recalls a similar application determined by the committee last year where there was also a lack of information provided for an agricultural dwelling in Christchurch which the committee approved. She added that the committee received more information in the meeting and, therefore, in her opinion, in order to remain consistent, members need to recall previous applications and decisions made. Councillor Sennitt Clough added that as the applicant is a well-known local farmer then the agent may have thought that the committee had more local knowledge than they actually did about the family. She added that as an application was passed previously for an agricultural dwelling then there does need to be consistency, and she will support the application.

·         Councillor Marks stated that he also agrees, and added that he presumes that the applicant has livestock as well and security for the site also needs to be a consideration and residing on the site gives an element of added security. Councillor Marks stated that officers are not mind readers and agents need to be putting more emphasis as to why applicants need to reside in this type of environment and provide that detail in their application submissions.

·         Councillor Connor stated that Mr Deptford provided a very informative presentation to the committee and he is aware that the family are a very well respected multi-generational farming business, and he will support the application.

·         Councillor Marks stated that had the information been provided in the application submission it may not have been necessary for the application to have been brought to the committee for consideration which would have saved significant time for officers, and he hopes that agents consider this going forwards.

Proposed by Councillor Benney, seconded by Councillor Mrs French and agreed that the application be GRANTED against the officer’s recommendation with condition delegated to officers.

Members do not support the officer’s recommendation of refusal as they feel that the need for the dwelling to be on site overrides policy, they feel that LP12 and LP16 are very subjective as flood zones or the drainage board cannot be moved and the dwelling is required on the site.