City of Bradford Metropolitan Council v. Gillson and Sons

A building and construction company appealed a local council failure to determine within the prescribed period an application for permission to erect three wind turbines at a quarry in Haworth, West Yorkshire. On appeal, the Planning Inspector concluded that the contribution that 2,500 kW turbines would make to the national energy supply in achievement of national policies on renewable energy, though tangible, did not outweigh the serious harm the proposal would cause to the character and appearance of the surrounding landscape, particularly the Brow Moors, having regard to local planning policies. The Inspector took particular note of the Moor’s importance in the national cultural history, due to their prominence in the writings of the Brontë family.