An inspector has thrown out four homes on the Glenfall Way field in Charlton Kings. The landscape won, but only after he set out a 2.69-year land supply.

A planning inspector has dismissed an appeal for four self-build homes on a field on the south side of Glenfall Way in Charlton Kings. The decision is dated 4 September 2026. It was reported to the council’s planning committee on 17 September.

The field stays a field. But the reasons matter well beyond one road. The inspector found the harm to the Cotswold National Landscape was the only thing that tipped the balance. On housing, almost everything went the developer’s way.

What was proposed

The outline application, reference 25/00650/OUT, was made by Waddeton Park Ltd. It sought permission for four self-build or custom-build homes, with only the access decided in detail. The council’s planning committee refused it, and the developer appealed. (Cheltenham Borough Council, appeals report, 8 September 2026)

The developer’s legal undertaking offered:

  • a payment towards protecting the Cotswold Beechwoods Special Area of Conservation
  • marketing the plots as self-build first
  • public open space on the rest of the field
  • a new footpath link from the road to the existing right of way at the back of the field
  • a 10% gain in biodiversity

Why the inspector said no

The inspector visited on 11 August. He described the field as open, with views from Glenfall Way and Ryeworth Road across to the Cotswold escarpment. He found that the houses “would mar the appreciation of the field as part of the wider countryside”.

He attached “very considerable weight” to the harm to the National Landscape. He found it “substantially outweighs the benefits of the development”. That was enough to dismiss the appeal. (Appeal decision 6008569, paragraphs 12 to 30)

The figures in the decision

The decision records where Cheltenham stands on housing. None of it is new to the council, but it is now set down by an inspector:

  • 2.69 years of housing land. The council must show five years. The inspector called it “a significant shortfall”.
  • 56% on the Housing Delivery Test for the three years to 2025. That is below the 75% line in national policy.
  • 114 self-build plots short. The developer said the council had a shortfall of 114 plots against its self-build register. The inspector noted the council “has not sought to dispute” it.
Bar chart comparing the 2.69 years of deliverable housing land Cheltenham can show with the five years required, as recorded in the Glenfall Way appeal decision of 4 September 2026.
Cheltenham's housing land supply against the five-year requirement, as recorded in the Glenfall Way appeal decision. Chart by The Cheltenham Journal.
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The inspector also applied the national planning policy revised in August 2026. The site is outside Cheltenham’s built-up area and is not allocated for housing. That breaks policy SD10 of the 2017 Joint Core Strategy. But he gave that breach “very little weight”, because he found the policy “materially inconsistent” with the new national rules on housing outside settlements.

He also found the field was a suitable place for homes in every other respect. Residents could walk to the nearby primary school, and there are bus stops close by.

Why that matters for other fields

The National Landscape saved this site. Much of the land around Cheltenham’s edge is not in it. On this decision’s reasoning, the council’s settlement-boundary policy counts for very little on a greenfield site outside the National Landscape. Without the landscape protection, the housing shortfall would carry the most weight.

That is the inspector’s reasoning on one small site, not a ruling on any other. Each appeal is decided on its own facts. But it explains why developers are still testing sites on the edge of town while the new Strategic and Local Plan is prepared. Our planning news page sets out the land supply figures in full. The October vote on which sites the new plan allocates is covered in our Green Belt report.

What it means for you

  • The Glenfall Way field is not getting four houses under this application. The inspector’s decision is final, subject only to a challenge in the High Court within six weeks of the decision.
  • If a scheme near you is outside the National Landscape, expect the council’s housing shortfall to be the developer’s main argument. Objections that rest only on the site being outside the settlement boundary now carry little weight. Specific harm, to landscape, heritage, flooding or roads, is what an inspector weighs.
  • If you want to build your own home, the council keeps a self-build register. The undisputed shortfall of 114 plots is an argument in favour of self-build schemes.