Commissioners in Kirk Michael have successfully appealed against a decision to allow minibuses to be parked at the village’s primary school.

The local authority’s appeal against the application (18/00811/C), was supported by a planning inspector and the minister responsible for planning Geoffrey Boot.

Michael Commissioners appealed against the retrospective application by the Department of Infrastructure for it to park two minibuses at Kirk Michael School.

The minibuses are used for dial-a-ride, ConnectPorts, school transport and patient transfer sevices.

The reasons behind the appeal included that approval would set an ’unfortunate precedent’. The local authority also highlighted that the buses had been there for three years without permission and argued that the school is not a suitable operating centre.

The Commissioners made it clear that it felt that the DoI was ’acting illegally and should be fined £2,500 for parking there for three years before applying for planning permission’.

Michael Commissioners also raised concerns over the safety of parking at the school, a loss in the number of spaces available for staff and parents and it pointed out that there is a DoI owned car park nearby where the buses could be parked.

The local authority was supported in its appeal by Treasury Minister Alfred Cannan (MHK for Ayre and Michael).

Mr Cannan’s comments were summarised in the inspector’s report as saying that the parking of buses ’impacts on the character and appearance’ of the area and the school and that he ’fails to see how a primary school site is deemed as a suitable operating centre for public service vehicles’.

The DoI sought to fight the appeal and the inspector noted that its argument included that the commissioners were ’not concerned enough to be present’ at the planning committee meeting which approved the initial application.

And the department tried to argue that the minibuses are operated ’for the most vulnerable members of society’ and the parking of the minibuses matches the area where they are used.

The DoI also cited as reasons to reject the appeal a lack of space at the DoI’s main bus depots and that all other applications for minibuses being parked at other sites around the island had been approved.

In making his recommendation to Mr Boot, independent inspector Anthony Wharton agreed with many arguments put forward by Michael Commissioners including the suggestion that buses be parked in the nearby DoI owned car park.

Mr Wharton said the DoI’s suggestion that spaces at the alternative car park were too small for minibuses was ’somewhat pathetic’.

Mr Wharton said in his conclusion: ’I consider that the Kirk Michael School, the Michael Commissioners, residents, parents and the community in general should not have to endure any further risks and harmful effects, caused by the parking of these public service vehicles within the primary school car park.

’The appeal in my view should be allowed and the planning application decision should be set aside.’

In the decision notice overruling the original approval, Mr Boot said he ’concurred’ with the recommendation.