On the 4 February 2022 the South OXfordshire District Council refused the application P21/S1503/O of the development of 350 house off Papist Way by JT Leavesley Limited.

The SODC gave the following reasons:

1. The application site is not allocated for development in either the South Oxfordshire Local Plan 2035, or the Cholsey Neighbourhood Plan (CNP) (2019) and lies outside the built-up area boundary as shown on the CNP Proposals Map. The development would therefore not accord with the distribution strategy for housing within the district, as set out in policy STRAT1 of the South Oxfordshire Local Plan 2035, and would also be contrary to policy CNP STRAT1 of the Cholsey Neighbourhood Plan.
2. The large extent of development proposed, particularly in the north eastern part of the site which includes large building blocks, would appear intrusive and out of character and would be harmful to the rural landscape, and would adversely affect the sparsely settled character of the landscape, contrary to Local Landscape Character Area guidelines. The development therefore fails to demonstrate the protection of important landscape features and provide a development integrated into the landscape, contrary to policy ENV1 of the South Oxfordshire Local Plan 2035.
3. The submitted application has failed to provide sufficient information to fully assess the impacts of the proposals on the highway network, notably at the roundabouts along A4130 which form a by-pass around Wallingford. Further, an up-to-date traffic impact assessment is required along with appropriate mitigation. As such the application is unable to demonstrate that the impact upon the highway network would not be severe, as required by Paragraph 111 of the NPPF and the application is therefore contrary to policies TRANS2, TRANS4 and TRANS5 of the South Oxfordshire Local Plan 2035.
4. Insufficient information accompanies the application to demonstrate that a safe vehicular and pedestrian access can be achieved, contrary to policy TRANS5 of the South Oxfordshire Local Plan 2035. Furthermore, in relation to the proposed access, insufficient justification has been provided for the relocation of the listed milestone and as such the significance of the heritage asset will be diminished. The proposal is therefore contrary to policy ENV7 of the South Oxfordshire Local Plan 2035.
5. In the absence of a completed Section 106 legal agreement, the proposal fails to secure affordable housing to meet the needs of the development. As such, the development would be contrary to policy H9 of the South Oxfordshire Local Plan 2035 and the National Planning Policy Framework.
6. In the absence of a completed Section 106 agreement the proposal fails to secure infrastructure to meet the needs of the development. As such the development is contrary to policy INF1 of the South Oxfordshire Local Plan 2035 and the National Planning Policy Framework. Moreover, there is insufficient secondary school capacity in Wallingford, the location of the nearest secondary school to the site, and the impact of the proposed development on secondary education could not be suitably mitigated by the development.