The WRA Committee reviews all planning applications which affect the Estate. We will oppose any development which may breach the key covenants protecting the rural nature of the Estate.
As explained on the Impact page, we will also object to any development which we believe threatens real harm to the character of the Conservation Area or Estate. This is most likely to be the case if a development is extreme in size, seriously threatens the rural appearance of the Estate or appears wholly inappropriate in overall design. We do not object on narrow matters of style. We use Sevenoaks District Council’s Conservation Area Appraisal and Management Plan (CAAMP) as a reference when assessing applications. We expect to object only very rarely and if we believe doing so is clearly necessary. When we do so, we inform residents so that they can make their own comments on a planning application, whether for or against.
We are emphatically not opposed to modernisation of properties. We expect owners to improve and, where necessary, enlarge their properties in line with modern standards and family requirements. This may be via extension, partial rebuilding or, in some cases, complete rebuilding. We are pleased to see developments and modernisation which enhance the Estate and Conservation Area.
We will not become involved in planning applications or differences between neighbours unless the issues involved are so extreme that they threaten the character of the Estate as a whole.
We do not give advice on planned developments by residents. Our only general guidance is that anyone planning a development should (a) take care not to breach the key covenants protecting the Estate and (b) take full account of the requirements of the CAAMP.
Anyone planning a development should, where necessary, rely on professional advisers. If they require further guidance on planning matters, they should consult Sevenoaks District Council under its ‘Pre-application planning advice service’.
We also do not give statements of support for individual developments by owners. If a development is justified, it should stand on its own merits.
We thus limit our actions to objecting in the cases described above. This is not because we wish to appear negative over planning and development – quite the contrary. It is simply the proper and most efficient way of fulfilling our role as agreed by our members.