A planning application to turn a redundant stable block on Woodhouse Lane into a vape shop has been refused.

The decision was made by Staffordshire Moorlands District Council's planning officers on Tuesday.

Biddulph Nub News reported previously how the application, made by David and Catherine Tellwright, was submitted to the council on 15th July, and sought a "change of use of existing redundant stable block to retail shop and store and associated development".

The applicants run the E-cigs shop on Mill Street in Congleton, but were left looking for alternatives due to the Coronavirus pandemic, with Mill Street's layout making the running of the shop difficult with social distancing measures in place.

Local residents objected to the application for several reasons, including the feelings that Woodhouse Lane was too dangerous for a retail shop, there was a lack of pedestrian access in the area, and that the development would have an adverse visual impact on the Green Belt.

At a recent meeting of Biddulph Town Council's Planning Committee, town councillors said they wanted to echo the concerns of residents, but recommended the application for approval after deciding that their ruling should be kept to a specific set of planning reasons only.

However, the district council's planning officers have since refused the application, due to the proposed vape shop being in an "unsustainable rural location".

The officers' report said: "Whilst it is accepted that small shops and businesses are being affected by the current Covid-19 restrictions, the proposed relocation of the vape shop in Congleton to an unsustainable rural location to the west of Biddulph Moor and with poor accessibility from towns and villages via sustainable modes of transport and walking, would lead to a significant increase in vehicle movements and hence emissions and would also harm the character and amenities of this quiet rural locality."

It continued: "This is considered to outweigh any rural economic benefits to the area.

"The proposed change of use of the manege to a parking area would be harmful to the openness of the Green Belt and therefore inappropriate development.

"The economic and other considerations set out above do not constitute very special circumstances [needed to justify Green Belt development]."

To view the application and its supporting documents in full, visit the district council's planning portal on its website here.