Issue - meetings
25/00886/FP Reed House, Jacksons Lane, Reed, Royston, Hertfordshire, SG8 8AB
Meeting: 04/06/2026 - Planning Control Committee (Item 7)
7 25/00886/FP REED HOUSE, JACKSONS LANE, REED, ROYSTON, HERTFORDSHIRE, SG8 8AB 
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REPORT OF THE
DEVELOPMENT AND CONSERVATION MANAGER
Erection of 14 dwellings and associated infrastructure (Amended
plans received 22/12/25 and 13/05/26).
Additional documents:
Decision:
RESOLVED: That application 25/00886/FP be REFUSED for the reasons set out in the report of the Development and Conservation Manager.
Minutes:
Audio recording – 02 hours 09 minutes 11 seconds
The Principal Planning Officer advised that there were no updated matters to report on since the publication of the agenda.
The Principal Planning Officer then presented the report in respect of Application 25/00886/FP accompanied by a visual presentation consisting of plans and photographs.
The following Members asked questions:
· Councillor Ruth Brown
· Councillor Martin Prescott
In response to questions, the Principal Planning Officer advised that:
· The titled balance has been disengaged as the land was within a conservation area, which was one of the protected areas that could provide a strong reason for refusing the development proposal as detailed at paragraph 11D of the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF).
· The Council had to account for the opinion of the Highways Authority as a statutory consultee and could not provide reasons as to why they had raised no objection.
The Chair invited the Public Objector, Reed Parish Councillor Simon Aries to speak against the application. Parish Councillor Aries thanked the Chair for the opportunity and provided the Committee with a verbal presentation, and highlighted the following:
· They were here to speak on behalf of Reed Parish Council, who opposed the application and had listened to concerns from residents.
· The site was outside the Local Plan settlement boundary and faced away from the village.
· Minor adjustments and rebuttal statements had failed to overcome the fundamental location problem or the issues highlighted in the report of the Principal Planning Officer.
· Site access would be via The Joint, which was a narrow, restricted country road that would fail to integrate it with the rest of the settlement in a meaningful degree and disrupt the settlement pattern, which would make it contrary to policies in the Local Plan.
· The site would also be in the conservation area, contrary to the Local Plan.
· 21 homes proposed on an allocated site elsewhere in Reed, which had been through consultation, showed how sustainable development should be carried out.
· The Parish Council acknowledged the pressures of the lack of a five-year housing land supply and wanted to be an ally, not an obstacle when addressing this.
· However, the lack of a five-year supply did not justify dismissing the Local Plan in favour of speculative development such as this.
· This application would open the door to further speculative development in Reed such as a proposed application for 30-40 dwellings next to The Joint, which would urbanise and degrade the valued landscape of the area.
There were no points of clarification from Members.
The Chair thanked Parish Councillor Aries for their presentation and invited the Agent to the Applicant, Rosanna Metcalfe, to speak in support of the application. Ms Metcalfe thanked the Chair for the opportunity and provided the Committee with a verbal presentation, and highlighted the following:
· This site was previously developed land as confirmed by legal advice that had been shared with the Council.
· The NPPF required local authorities to give substantial weight to housing developments on brownfield sites unless substantial ... view the full minutes text for item 7