Mobile home scheme did trigger affordable housing contribution

11 Jul 2018

Planning and Environment

An Inspector has decided that an affordable housing policy which required “proposals for new housing development” to provide an affordable housing contribution, did apply to a proposal for 20 new mobile homes (at DL, 49).

The Inspector accepted the Council’s submissions that, whilst the mobile homes were not bricks and mortar homes, they did “provide homes for people to live in on a permeant basis” (DL, 47).

The Inspector also accepted the Council’s submission that requiring the Appellant to enter into a unilateral undertaking to make an affordable housing contribution, if he found it was due, was not in accordance with the PPG (DL, 51).

The decision will be of interest to promoters of park home schemes, as well as councils considering such applications.

Ashley Bowes appeared successfully for South Cambridgeshire District Council, in his seventh consecutive success for local authorities at appeal since January 2017.

The Inspector’s decision letter can be found here.