Issue - meetings

The Committee received an application for change of use of the former Cambridge Building Society branch (A2/B1) to an (A4) public house use with ancillary staff accommodation and associated development including the insertion of new openings and the relocation of the entrance.

The Senior Planning Officer updated his report by referring to amended details for paragraph 0.7. The amended text is in bold 

0.7 Policy 50 of the Cambridge Local Plan 2018 states that homes created through change of use from non-residential uses should seek to meet space standards where practicable to do. It is acknowledged that the overall size of the two units do not meet the internal residential space standards requirements. However, given that the proposed converted accommodation will be ancillary to the A4 use of the development it is not considered necessary to apply the same amount of weight to Policy 50 of the Cambridge Local Plan 2018 in this instance. The sizes of the two bedrooms in the proposed managers flat have floor areas of 9.8m2 and 12m2 which both exceed the minimum space standard requirements for a single bedroom and a double bedroom. Within the unit for the staff accommodation the two bedrooms also exceed the minimum space standard requirements for single bedrooms, staff bedroom 1 measures 10.9m2 and staff bedroom 2 measures 9m2. Therefore, on balance given that the policy does not state that it is essential for conversions to meet space standards and the residential uses will be ancillary to the A4 use with bedroom sizes that meet the space standard requirements, overall the quality of the living environment is considered to be acceptable in respect of internal space.

Staff accommodation 

Mr Durrant (Applicant’s Agent) addressed the Committee in support of the application.

The Committee:

Unanimously resolved to grant the application for change of use in accordance with the Officer recommendation, for the reasons set out in the Officer’s report, and subject to the conditions recommended by the Officer including the amendment to condition 50 set out above.