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06
Apr
Plans for remote bed and breakfast in Nidderdale refused
Plans to create a new bed and breakfast in rural Nidderdale have been rejected.
The Trustees of Heyshaw Moor sought North Yorkshire Council’s approval to dismantle and rebuild High Rails Barn, located on Foldshaw Lane to High Rails towards Dacre, to create a B&B, and for the associated use of the surrounding land.
According to planning documents, a structural survey undertaken last September found the barn and an adjacent building are “in a very poor condition”.
The loss of the roof and floor structures have “severely weakened the structure”, plans say, while walls are unrestrained and unprotected against water ingress.
Some of the walls have already collapsed and the front of the barn is close to following suit.
The proposal says a simple conversion would not be suitable given the structural issues, so the applicants wanted to dismantle and rebuild the barn to “ensure its longevity, preserve the historic character of the barn for the future and increase the safety of the site”.
Planning consent to convert the barn into a B&B was granted in 2023, but its condition has since deteriorated and it is no longer able to be converted, meaning the previous planning approval can't be implemented.
How the B&B could've looked. Credit: S&S Architects.
The applicants wanted to create a four-bedroom bed and breakfast with a staff meeting space and an open-plan kitchen and dining area.
The barn, which is in a remote location, would have been largely rebuilt using the existing stone. Some of it, plans say, would then be clad with timber and finished with a 'green roof'.
The Trustees of Heyshaw Moor also sought to retain existing trees, as well as plant new trees and new hedging at the site.
They also planned to install a ground source heat pump to provide renewable energy.
But the council wasn’t persuaded by the plans and refused them yesterday (April 1).
Refusal
A council report suggests the property is in an inappropriate location for a bed and breakfast.
The report notes the building is “not near a service village” – being 3.2 miles from Pateley Bridge and 4.3 miles from Summerbridge – nor are there public transport links near the site.
The council also says the scale, layout and design of the proposed B&B is “not considered to be appropriate to the location” as it would “introduce a residential-type building in a rural and isolated location”.
However, the council did say the proposal wouldn’t generate an adverse level of traffic or have an adverse impact on highway safety, nor would it have an unacceptable impact on nearby properties.
The B&B also would've enhanced local visitor accommodation offerings, the report adds.
High Rails Barn is in a very remote location. Credit: S&S Architects.
But the council’s refusal was, in part, due to the potential impact the new building would have on Nidderdale National Landscape – formerly known as the Nidderdale Area of Outstanding Beauty.
Nidderdale National Landscape's joint advisory committee objected to the plans, raising concers over a “new building for a type of residential use in a remote and isolated location”.
It added:
There is not considered to be policy support for the erection of a new structure for this purpose in such an isolated location and, although there would be visitor and economic benefits, once constructed and operating as a “C” class use [hotel] its use as a permanent residential dwelling would be hard to resist.
The council report says the proposed new building would also “alienate the building from its rural surroundings due to its domestic appearance”, and would be “incongruous within its setting”.
Rejecting the plans, the council said the proposed B&B would be in an “unsuitable location, which would be heavily reliant on the car to access local facilities”.
It added:
The domestic appearance of the proposed bed and breakfast in relation to its setting would erode the special character of the Nidderdale National Landscape.
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