Seven-storey block of flats approved despite past appeal loss

An office building close to Slough train station will be knocked down in favour of a block of flats – up to four storeys higher than what is there now.

The council has agreed to allow the demolition of Automotive House, Grays Place, so that 43 flats can be put in its place.

The new building is going to be stepped – one part of the structure will rise to five storeys, another part goes up to six, and the tallest portion reaches seven.

This block will replace the current three-storey office building adjacent to the corner of Stanley Cottages. Flats will be largely car-free, with just two car parking spaces provided.

In July 2023, applicants Slough Propinvest Ltd, lost an appeal against Slough council for a similar proposal.

The Government planning inspector was concerned with the scale of the development and felt it would have ‘a significant harmful effect on the character and appearance of the area.’

This previous scheme featured a taller building, and a smaller gap between it and a neighbouring one.

Tim Waller, planning consultant for the applicant, said: “This scheme has been through four iterations, and we feel this is the right design for the site.”

He mentioned that the ‘tilted balance’ is also in the application’s favour - in other words, because the scheme offers housing, Slough will need a very good reason to turn it down.

The tilted balance comes into play when a local authority can’t demonstrate that it has designated enough land for housing in its area, which could lead to a housing shortage.

In these circumstances, speculative proposals for housing are more likely to be approved at appeal, if the council can’t justify a refusal.

When the larger version of this scheme came to appeal before, the tilted balance was in play, but it was the ‘significant’ harm to the character that swayed the planning inspector in Slough council’s favour. Since the scheme is now reduced, that might not work as an argument again.

This application was discussed at a Slough planning committee on Wednesday (October 29).

Chair of the meeting, Councillor Dhruv Tomar (Con, Slough Central), observed that the development ‘will exacerbate existing parking issues’.

But this matter was already dealt with in the previous appeal. The inspector did not have any concerns about parking – and would be unlikely to have issues with it this time around.

Ultimately, the planning committee voted unanimously in favour of approving the 43 flats.

It is understood that the applicant will be making financial contributions for education and mitigation for impacts on Burnham Beeches (a Special Area of Conservation).

The developer is also set to pay for and deliver agreed changes to nearby roads, pavements and related infrastructure, and a travel plan to help manage how people travel to and from a development.

Affordable housing is also being considered – part of the agreement will be that, near the end of the project, the developer’s profits will be reviewed, and they will pay more towards affordable housing if the scheme turns out to be more profitable than they currently say.