Case Study: Planning Appraisal Services

Varsity Town Planning were engaged by a local rural Business Park who were trying to find some alternative uses for a site that had previously been granted planning permission for tennis courts to support a local health club. They wanted to consider whether there were any more commercial uses that could be attractive on the site.

The first use that we considered for them was whether a care home or elder care village might be appropriate: The site is fairly remote but has a lot of facilities within the business park and has an attractive woodland area surrounding it. The policy position would have supported this use, but the site was slightly too small for current market demand.

We have revisited other options and have considered the policy framework for supporting renewables on the site. We are currently working with the landowner to look at the possibility of a solar farm, with improvements to the woodland for potential biodiversity net gain, as well as recreational routes that would be created for users of the business park and local residents.