The High Court in London recently sided with Wigan Council after rejecting a couple’s appeal regarding planning permission granted for a residential development of 39 dwellings.
Steven Howard and Justine Bennett decided to challenge the council over its decision to give permission for Morris Homes to build 39 homes on land to the south of Appley Bridge in Wigan.
They argued that approval was given despite a failure to fully assess the environmental impacts at the site, which incorporates contaminated land, and that the council had not conducted an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA), even though advisable at the site, simply because it was not required by EU law.
Mr Foster, principal planning officer at Wigan Council, initially noted that because of the site’s historical use there was the possibility of future problems occurring due to ground contamination.
However, his report concluded that there was only a small environmental risk and that it could be managed effectively due to it being in a concentrated area.
At the High Court, Mr Justice Supperstone dismissed Steven Howard and Justine Bennett’s appeal and ordered them to cover legal costs of £10,000 due to their unsuccessful legal challenge.
Reportedly, the council had been seeking damages of £15,723.
However, the sum demanded from the couple was two times the amount they had expected to pay due to their possession of a Protected Costs Order (PCO), which was meant to limit their liability to £5,000 in the event of them losing the case.