Case No. UKUT-41-(LC)-UTLC-Case-Numbers:-LC-2022-180

5.Cottingham is located about 4 miles north west of Hull city centre and 4 miles south of Beverley. It has the appearance of a large village but is joined, at its eastern extremity, to Inglemere, which is part of Hull. Larkin Avenue is part of a development by Redrow Homes Limited comprising houses of various sizes and configurations which was completed in 2013. The development is situated just off the Dunswell Road about 0.75 miles north east of Cottingham village centre.6.The development as a whole is approximately rectangular in shape and Larkin Avenue forms the southern and eastern boundaries. Along with Holtby Avenue it also comprises part of the spine road. The Property is situated on the eastern edge of the development and enjoys views over a communal grassed area towards open countryside beyond. The developer has not adopted a uniform design code and has incorporated a number of 1930’s design elements in some of the houses, presumably to create the impression of a traditional residential street scene with a mix of styles and ages.7.The houses on the eastern facing part of Larkin Avenue tend to be the largest and most prestigious in the development. Most of them have front gardens and parking for more than one car. Some have garages that are integral to the house and others are detached. The impression gained when entering the development for the first time is one of spaciousness because the Larkin Avenue houses are set well back from Dunswell Road and the irregular layout avoids a terraced effect. On closer inspection it is apparent that the density of development is higher than expected and that some of the houses are no more than a metre or so apart. Others are separated by little more than the width of the driveway providing access to the garage. This is the arrangement between the Property and 5 Larkin Avenue. The Property appears to have one of the longest driveways in the whole development and is easily capable of providing parking for 3 cars and possibly 4, depending on their size.8.The road surface of Larkin Avenue is made up of sections of block paving in a herringbone pattern and sections of asphalt. The edges of the road are delineated by an edging paver with a bevelled edge set at a height some 50 millimetres above the road surface. Beyond that is a further area of block paving laid in stretcher pattern and four pavers in width. The entire width of this raised area is about 500 millimetres. It is not wide enough to be properly described as a pavement and is too narrow to easily accommodate a wheelchair or buggy. At the time of my visit it was being used at various points throughout the development for car parking (in parallel fashion with two wheels on the raised area).9.The Property itself is a conventional detached two storey design, and has brick elevations together with a pitched, concrete tiled roof. At the rear is a rectangular garden, largely laid to grass with wooden boundary fencing. The garden contains a small shed and, in the north western corner, a cabin used by Mrs Hodgson for her business. The cabin is of wooden construction with a monopitch roof. On the eastern facing wall there are three full height windows and a door with a window in the upper half. There is a further window in the southern side. Internally the walls are finished in tongue and groove boarding and the floor is covered with a wood laminate finish. The ceiling is panelled with inset downlighters. The cabin is connected to the mains electricity supply but does not have central heating or a fixed water supply. Waste water is collected and used to irrigate the garden. At the time of my visit the cabin contained, amongst other things, a massage bed, various shelves and storage units, a small table suitable for undertaking manicures and an armchair. The plan below shows the arrangement of the relevant part of Larkin Avenue. The Property is shown outlined and marked ‘74’. Mr Cook’s house is shown as ‘73’ and Mr Holden’s as ‘72’. The cabin is shown on the plan below. It is sited parallel to the fences that separate the Property from plots 102 and 75. With the exception of the window in the end wall, the door and windows face towards the house.10.Mr and Mrs Hodgson moved to Larkin Avenue in 2013 and were the first owners of number 7, having bought the Property from the developer. They first thought of building a cabin in the garden in 2019 and their plans came to fruition in February 2021. Mrs Hodgson had previously run her business from commercial premises in Cottingham village centre but owing to the trading uncertainty caused by the Covid-19 pandemic she decided to relocate the business to the cabin in April 2021 rather than use it for family purposes as originally intended. 11.Mrs Hodgson said that she only became aware of the covenant when she realised that planning permission would be needed to allow commercial use of the cabin. She explained that she had not been involved with the initial purchase which had been handled by her husband.