Readers will recall that LOSRA objected to the development of the old nurseries site in Fordbridge Road (see article of 16th February). We are pleased to report that the Local Planning Authority has now refused the application for the reasons listed below. These very robust and comprehensive reasons for refusal do not, of course, rule out the possibility of an appeal by the developers to the Secretary of State. We shall see.

1. The proposal represents inappropriate development in the Green Belt for which no very special circumstances have been demonstrated. It will result in the site having a more urban character, will diminish the openness and harm the visual amenities of the Green Belt, and conflict with the purposes of including land within it. It is therefore contrary to Policy GB1 of the Spelthorne Borough Local Plan 2001and Section 9 (Protecting Green Belt Land) of the Government's National Planning Policy Framework 2012.

2. The site lies within Flood Zone 3a/3b defined by the Planning Practice Guidance to the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) as having a high probability of flooding. The proposed development will result in a loss of flood plain storage within the 1 in 100 with an appropriate allowance for climate change flood extent. In addition, the applicant has failed to demonstrate to the satisfaction of the Local Planning Authority that an acceptable Sustainable Drainage Scheme can be achieved on the site. The proposed development will therefore increase the risk of flooding both on-site and elsewhere which is contrary to Policy LO1 of the Core Strategy and Policies DPD 2009, the Supplementary Planning Document on Flooding 2012 and Section 10 of the NPPF.

3. The site is in an unsustainable location where future residents of the proposed development would have to rely on private motorised forms of transport in order to reach education, employment, leisure and retail land uses due to the distance that a good range of these land uses are from the site and because of the inadequate street lighting and footway between the site and the nearest public transport, contrary to Policy CC2 of the Core Strategy and Policies DPD, 2009 an the NPPF, 2012.

4. Insufficient ecological surveys have been submitted with the application and it is not therefore possible to ascertain the full impact of the proposal on any protected species. The proposal is therefore contrary to Circular 06/2005, Policy EN8 of the Council's Core Strategy and Policies DPD, 2009 and Section 11 of the NPPF.

5. The proposal involves the creation of more than 15 residential units and only 4 affordable units are to be provided in the scheme. The applicant has failed to demonstrate to the satisfaction of the Local Planning Authority that it is not financially viable to provide a greater proportion of affordable housing on the site. The development is therefore contrary to Policy HO3 of the Core Strategy and Policies DPD, 2009.

6. The proposal fails to provide an adequate provision of smaller sized dwellings (one or two bedroom units) of which there is a shortage within the Borough. It therefore does not comply with Policy HO4 of the Spelthorne Development Plan Core Strategy and Policies DPD, 2009 and the Supplementary Planning Document on Housing Size and Type, 2012.