"… inappropriate development is, by definition, harmful to the Green Belt. It is for the applicant to show why permission should be granted. Very special circumstances to justify inappropriate development will not exist unless the harm by reason of inappropriateness, and any other harm, is clearly outweighed by other considerations . . . "
“(b) to reduce the number of unauthorised encampments and developments and the conflict and controversy they cause and to make enforcement more effective where local authorities have complied with the guidance in this Circular; (c) to increase significantly the number of gypsy and traveller sites in appropriate locations with planning permission in order to address under-provision over the next 3 - 5 years; … (i) to help to avoid gypsies and travellers becoming homeless through eviction from unauthorised sites without an alternative to move to.”
“Advice on the use of temporary permissions is contained in paragraphs 108-113 of Circular 11/95, The Use of Conditions in Planning Permission. Paragraph 110 advises that a temporary permission may be justified where it is expected that the planning circumstances will change in a particular way at the end of the period of the temporary permission. Where there is unmet need but no available alternative gypsy and traveller sites provision in an area but there is a reasonable expectation that new sites are likely to become available at the end of that period in the area which will meet that need, local planning authorities should give consideration to granting a temporary permission. Such circumstances may arise, for example, in a case where a local planning authority is preparing its site allocations DPD. In such circumstances, local planning authorities are expected to give substantial weight to the unmet need in considering whether a temporary planning permission is justified. The fact that temporary permission has been granted on this basis should not be regarded as setting a precedent for the determination of any future applications for full permission for use of the land as a caravan site.”
“There is a general presumption against inappropriate development within Green Belts. New gypsy and traveller sites in the Green Belt are normally inappropriate development, as defined in Planning Policy Guidance 2: Green Belts (PPG2). National planning policy on Green Belts applies equally to applications for planning permission from gypsies and travellers, and the settled population. Alternatives should be explored before Green Belt locations are considered. Pressure for development of sites on Green Belt land can usually be avoided if the local planning authority allocates sufficient sites elsewhere in its area, in its LDF, to meet identified need.”
“Nevertheless, on a fair reading of the guidance, it cannot properly be concluded that the Secretary of State was advising local planning authorities that in cases of unmet need for gypsy sites, Green Belt considerations should be put aside. On the contrary, the guidance draws attention to the continuing validity of PPG2. Thus, it was rightly common ground in this case that the outcome of the appeal turned upon the proper application of PPG2, paragraphs 3.1 and 3.2.”
“Conclusion – Other Considerations 37. I have come to the views that, while not resulting in unacceptable patterns of travel, the proposed development would be inappropriate and cause unacceptable harm to the Green Belt and the surrounding area’s character and appearance. The Green Belt harm, in particular, is a matter to which substantial weight should be given. 38. Of the other considerations put forward by the appellants, I consider that the cost of unauthorised encampments, the ability in general to address concerns by conditions and the treatment of Circular 01/2006 are matters which are neither exceptional nor out of the ordinary. The conflict of Policy COM6 with national guidance is a neutral factor. 39. The need for more gypsy sites and employment needs are matters to which some weight should be attached, but the former is not unusual and the latter can carry little weight in view of the enforcement breach. Worthy of greater weight are the education and health needs, for which a settled base would be beneficial, although these are not exceptionally serious and they do not point only to a site in the Green Belt. On the other hand, and despite the occupation of the site after enforcement action had been initiated, significant weight needs to be attached to the lack of alternative sites – no place has been identified for the appellants to move to now or in the near future. 40. The appellants have not claimed these other considerations individually outweigh the harm to the Green Belt and it is my view that even in combination, when balanced against the substantial Green Belt and other harm I have identified, the considerations do not clearly outweigh the harm. They do not, therefore, amount to the very special circumstance necessary to justify inappropriate development and a permanent permission would not be appropriate. 41. Dismissal of the appeal would interfere with the family’s rights to respect for their private and family life and their home (Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights ). The appellants acknowledge that moving on the land in breach of an enforcement notice weakens their rights and I consider the interference with these rights would be justified when weighed against the wider public interest of avoiding harm to the Green Belt and the area’s character and appearance. 42. However, bearing in mind the approach offered by Circular 01/2006…, there is a particular, time-limited factor: the forthcoming assessment of the need for gypsy sites, regionally and locally, and the Council’s intention to address the matter in a joint Core Strategy, when it expects to allocate sites. A temporary permission would enable the GTAA to be completed and allow additional sites to be made available, while giving the appellants somewhere to live and continue to seek an acceptable alternative. Bearing in mind also the undisputed need for gypsy sites generally and, particularly, the lack of any current alternative site, I consider that these matters, when taken together, clearly outweigh the Green Belt and other harm. 43. My overall conclusion, therefore, is that these concerns combine to become sufficient to constitute the very special circumstances necessary to justify a temporary planning permission. Nevertheless, as Circular 01/2006 points out, such permission should not be regarded as setting a precedent for the determination of any future applications for full permission for use of the land as a caravan site. I appreciate the restriction would itself interfere with the family’s human rights but, weighed against the legitimate aims of protecting the Green Belt and the area’s character and appearance, I consider temporary permission would not have a disproportionate effect on the appellants.”
“The combined effect of paragraphs 3.1 and 3.2 is that, in order to justify inappropriate development in the Green Belt, (a) there must be circumstances which can reasonably be described not merely as special but as very special, and (b) the harm to the Green Belt by reason of inappropriateness and any other harm must be clearly outweighed by other considerations. Those other considerations must be capable of being reasonably described as very special circumstances. If they are capable of being so described, whether they are very special in the context of the particular case will be a matter for the decision-maker's judgment.”
“… in planning, as in ordinary life, a number of ordinary factors may when combined together result in something very special. Whether any particular combination amounts to very special circumstances for the purposes of PPG2 will be a matter for the planning judgment of the decision-taker.”
“It is therefore necessary to ask whether the factors identified by the Planning Inspector in paragraph 42 were capable of amounting to very special circumstances. I am bound to say, I do not see how they can be. First, the forthcoming assessment of the need for gypsy sites, regionally and locally, even coupled with this Council's intention to address the matter, is not a special circumstance, let alone a very special circumstance. It is one that will be commonplace in local planning authorities up and down the country. The fact that the local Council intends to address them in a joint Core Strategy and expects to allocate the sites is clearly not a special circumstance. It is the local planning authority fulfilling its obligation. Secondly, the undisputed need for gypsy sites generally cannot amount to a very special circumstance. There is a national need for gypsy sites. This local planning authority's district is no different from the picture across the country as a whole. Thirdly, the lack of any current alternative site is the closest factor identified as a very special circumstance. Mr Cottle, counsel for Mr and Mrs Butler, submits that this is shorthand for a wider basket of considerations which would include the fact that Mr and Mrs Butler are of local origin, that they have children, one of whom at least goes to a local school, and the remainder of the considerations discussed by the Inspector when considering their application for permanent planning permission. I am prepared to accord to his brief reasoning in this respect something of that breadth. But to say in relation to this family that for those commonplace reasons that factor amounts to a very special factor, in my judgment, deprives the phrase of any real meaning. It is a commonplace not a very special factor.”
“The Gypsy did not rely on “accommodation need” (having “left a secure pitch”: paras 11 and 16), so that the only balancing factor was “the children’s educational needs” (described in paras 12) and of which Treasury Counsel “does not suggest that there is anything out of the ordinary” and which Sullivan J described as “entirely normal” (para 65). The decision of the Secretary of State on the facts was perverse, as recognized by Sullivan J at para 67: “it is impossible to see how these perfectly ordinary educational needs of two children can reasonably be described as special circumstances, let alone very special circumstances for the purposes of para.3.1 of PPG2.” “it is impossible to see how these perfectly ordinary educational needs of two children can reasonably be described as special circumstances, let alone very special circumstances for the purposes of para.3.1 of PPG2.”
“I do not seek to diminish the hardship involved but, if a planning authority is to decide that such hardship constitutes not merely special, but very special, circumstances so as to override planning policies, a much fuller analysis, in the planning context, is in my judgment required. . .”
“… it is important that the need to establish very special circumstances is not watered down. Clear and cogent analysis is required.”
“In this exchange Mr Green put to Mrs Heine that national advice on locating caravan sites in the open countryside had changed, with reference to Circulars 01/2006 and 1/94. My recollection is that Mrs Heine accepted that this constituted a significant change.”