High Court dismisses Council’s legal challenge
The Council launched a legal challenge under s288 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 against the Planning Inspectorate’s decision to grant planning permission following a planning inquiry for a 173-home development at Brooks Farm, Daws Heath Road. The application had originally been refused by the Planning Committee on the grounds that it constituted inappropriate development in the Green Belt. The Council were represented in court by Lord Charles Banner KC, widely recognised as one of the UK’s most effective and influential planning King’s Counsels.
Unfortunately, yesterday, November 13, 2025, the judge dismissed the Council’s case.
Councillor Warren Gibson, Deputy Leader of Castle Point Borough Council, said: "While we are very disappointed with the outcome, we do feel that Castle Point Borough Council has taken the case as far as it can in our commitment to protect our Green Belt. We pursued this legal challenge because we believe in upholding the integrity of our planning policies and safeguarding the character of our communities, and government guidance treats towns and villages differently when it comes to defending the Green Belt. Our commitment to the Green Belt remains unchanged, and we will continue to do all we can to resist inappropriate development.”
Councillor Tim Copsey, Portfolio Holder for Strategic Planning, said: “We thank the judge for hearing the case, and note that, as the court was clear that there is no guidance from the government as to the characteristics of a town compared to a village, the lack of clarity on this issue remains. We would like to make the point that it is extremely unhelpful that the planning practice guidance doesn’t offer any guidance on the distinction between villages and towns for the purposes of green belt policy, and I would like to take this opportunity to call on central government to urgently clear up this ambiguity.
“It was important to raise this to highlight that under current government guidance, villages are at risk, which we have done."
Pictured, Cllr Tim Copsey, Portfolio Holder for Strategic Planning (left) and Cllr Warren Gibson, Deputy Leader of Castle Point Borough Council (right) at the Royal Courts of Justice on Thursday 13 November 2025.