The Government’s Planning Inspectorate has allowed an appeal by Bradley Stoke Surgery against South Gloucestershire Council’s (SGC’s) rejection of a planning application to expand the Brook Way premises by a massive 150%.
The news follows a site visit by the agency’s inspector, Timothy Ball, that took place on 30th June 2008.
In a decision announced late last week, Mr Ball rejects SGC’s objections concerning the scale of the development, its effect on the streetscene and possible highways issues resulting from inadequate car parking provision.
Conditions attached to the inspector’s decision relate to the submission and approval of a landscaping plan and a scheme of implementation for the “Green Travel Policy and Plan” proposed by the surgery in its appeal correspondence.
The scheme approved by the inspector is the larger of two separate planning applications that have been made by the surgery within the last nine months. The Examiner reported last week that SGC’s Development Control (West) Committee had ignored the recommendations of planning officers and shown a green light to an application for a smaller scheme involving a 131% increase in floorspace.
Commenting on the earlier decision regarding approval of the smaller of the two schemes, Penny Harris, Chief Executive of South Gloucestershire Primary Care Trust (PCT), said:
It is great news that the plans have been approved, making more much-needed GP services available in Bradley Stoke.
South Gloucestershire PCT continues to work with other practices and we are determined that the necessary service developments will be delivered for the rest of the area.
The surgery management has yet to comment on the recent planning decisions and has given no indication of when the enlarged facilities will come into service.
