A Harrogate councillor will this week make a third attempt to win final approval to build a new countryside home after her previous plans were refused over size concerns.
Margaret Atkinson, a Conservative who represents the Fountains and Ripley ward on Harrogate Borough Council, was granted outline permission for a four-bedroom farmhouse opposite her existing home in Kirkby Malzeard in 2019.
But she has since made two failed attempts to secure a final go-ahead.
Her plans were previously refused because officers said she could not justify why the property needed to be so big.
However, cllr Atkinson has now submitted a scaled-back application, which has been recommended for approval at a meeting on Thursday.
A report to the meeting said the property – which is classed as a farm workers dwelling – had been reduced in size by around 75.5 square metres.
It said:
“The proposed dwelling provides for four-bedroom accommodation as per the previous application but the overall floorspace has been reduced from 276 sq m to 199.5 sq m.
“The revised proposal provides a dwelling that is considered to be of a scale and level of accommodation commensurate with that of an agricultural workers dwelling.”
The report added while the farmhouse was still larger than government’s nationally described space standards, which recommended up to 124 sq m, this was only guidance and the size was justified by the amount of space needed for farm work.
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As well as four bedrooms, cllr Atkinson’s plans also include a living room, dining room, kitchen, sunroom, office, storage space and two-bay carport.
Other reasons for refusal previously given by officers were a negative impact on the surrounding countryside and that the farmhouse would not have been affordable to any future owners because of its size.
The scale and layout of a proposed garden area was also a concern, as well as a lack of “suitable planting species and mix”.
However, the report to Thursday’s meeting said these areas had now been addressed in the new application. It said:
“The overall layout and design of the proposed property is considered to be in keeping with the local area and would not have a detrimental impact on the character and appearance of the Nidderdale Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.
“The proposed landscaping scheme sets out a clear delineation of the domestic curtilage from the wider landscape and the proposed planting provides opportunities for biodiversity net gain and a suitable level of screening.”
Kirkby Malzeard, Laverton and Dallowgill Parish Council did not support or object to the latest application, but did ask for reassurances over highway safety, future development on the site and the impact on the countryside.
Chancellor’s fund brings hope to Kirkby Malzeard pub campaignersCampaigners wanting to refurbish and reopen the Henry Jenkins Inn in Kirkby Malzeard have received a glimmer of hope.
Chancellor Rishi Sunak announced a new £150m Community Ownership Fund in this month’s Budget.
The fund lets community groups apply for £250,000 matched-funding to help them buy or take over local community assets at risk of being lost.
This fund, which will save some pubs from permanent closure, has been welcomed by the Henry Jenkins Community Pub Ltd.
Its 190 members have pledged £236,000 in a bid to turn the derelict building between Ripon and Masham back into use as a pub and community facility.
HJCPL chair David Robinson told the Stray Ferret:
“The government has decided to recognise the importance of protecting community assets.
“This fund acknowledges the difficulties faced by volunteer groups, particularly in rural areas, in raising the necessary funds for projects that could provide essential support for the lonely and vulnerable.”
Part of the building is still on the market.
“HJCP will need to examine the detail, but cautiously hope that the newly-available funding can be added to the toolkit.
“In the near future we will place another purchase bid with the owners and open discussions with Harrogate Borough Council about a compulsory purchase order.”
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David Fielder, who purchased the closed-down pub out of receivership in 2012, is willing to talk to the campaign group.
He said:
“The western portion of the building belongs to me and remains on the market for sale or rent.
“Offers must be fully unconditional and any potential purchaser will be required to prove funds are available.
“This will need to be by way of a copy bank statement or an unconditional letter of credit from a UK-based recognised lender.”
Last year, the pub campaigners suffered a bitter blow at a planning appeal.
The Planning Inspectorate, which deals with planning appeals, overturned Harrogate Borough Council’s decision to refuse planning permission for conversion of the eastern part of the Henry Jenkins site into a single dwelling.
HJCPL had been confident that the council’s decision would be upheld, but planning inspector Helen Hockenhull was not persuaded by their argument.
In her report she concluded:
Campaign to reopen Henry Jenkins Inn suffers hammer blow“There is no reasonable prospect of the public house reopening.”
The campaign to reopen the derelict Henry Jenkins Inn in Kirkby Malzeard as a community pub has been dealt a hammer blow.
The Planning inspectorate, a government agency that deals with planning appeals, has overturned Harrogate Borough Council’s decision to refuse planning permission for conversion of the eastern part of the site into a single dwelling.
The Henry Jenkins Community Pub Ltd sought to prevent redevelopment of the site by having the building registered as an asset of community value.
HJCPL’s 190 members raised £236,000 in pledges, with the intention of purchasing the whole Henry Jenkins site and refurbishing it.
The group was confident the council’s decision would be upheld – but Helen Hockenhull, of the Planning Inspectorate, was not persuaded by their argument.
Nine years after the last pint was pulled in the Henry Jenkins, she concluded:
“There is no reasonable prospect of the public house reopening.”
The Planning Inspectorate highlighted that Kirkby Malzeard already has the Queen’s Head pub.
In making her decision, Ms Hockenhull took into account that Kirkby Malzeard has an existing pub – The Queen’s Head – and also the fact that the Mechanics Institute, across the road from the appeal site, is licensed to sell alcohol.
The campaigners also had to overcome the hurdle that the western portion of the site, belonging to Fielder Holdings, remains available for sale or let.
The inspectorate accepted that allowing the application, made by developer Justin Claybourn, to convert the eastern annex into a dwelling, would be a disappointment, but concluded:
“I am not persuaded that the loss of the annex would make the remaining pub unviable for an alternative community use.
“The scheme would therefore not result in the unnecessary loss of a community facility reducing the community’s ability to meet its day to day needs.”
The appeal decision has been welcomed by David Fielder, who bought the shut-down Henry Jenkins from receivership in 2012 and subsequently sold the eastern portion of the building to Mr Claybourn.
Mr Fielder, whose company David Fielder Inns owns and operates 16 pubs, mainly in Yorkshire and Hambleton, told the Stray Ferret:
“Of these, 10 were closed when I bought them and nine were successfully re-opened and traded prior to covid, the only exception being the Henry Jenkins. I simply could not attract a tenant.
“Kirkby Malzeard cannot sustain two pubs, this view has been echoed by everyone I have had to view or have approached with a view to taking the Henry Jenkins on.
“There are also six pubs within 3.6 miles of the village all offering different experiences. Two have been for sale in recent years and failed to attract buyers.”
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HJCPL has no right of appeal against the inspector’s decision.
Its chairman, David Robinson, said:
“We must accept her conclusions and move on.
“It’s a blow and a big setback. We felt that we had a very strong case and we were supported at the online appeal hearing by an HBC planning officer.”
The western portion of the Henry Jenkins Inn is still available for sale or let.
HJCP’s management team must now decide whether making Mr Fielder an offer for his part of the site would enable it to create a viable community facility.
Renovation plans approved for Knaresborough’s Cromwell buildingThe council has approved plans to renovate the site where Oliver Cromwell reportedly stayed during the siege of Knaresborough in 1644.
Harrogate Borough Council’s planning committee met virtually today to consider the plans and councillors approved them unanimously.
80 Knaresborough High Street, which dates back to 1764, has been derelict for decades and councillors commented today that it has been “an eyesore”.
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The council itself is behind the application to turn the building, as well as a former weaver’s workshop at 82 High Street, into flats and new shops.
It purchased the two Grade II listed properties in 2019 from developer Freshwater Group with the intention of bringing them back into use.
Plans to repair church wall in Kirby Malzeard
The planning committee also unanimously approved a £19,000 reconstruction and repair of a church wall at St Andrew’s in Kirby Malzeard.
A 10-metre section of wall collapsed onto Church Street on February 19, causing the closure of the road between Kirkby Malzeard and Masham.
There has been a diversion in place for more than eight months.
The collapsed section of wall in Kirkby Malzeard.
Planning permission was required for reconstruction of the collapsed section and repair of a further 30-metre length of the wall.
Before work can proceed, further discussions need to be completed with Historic England, which has raised concerns about the proposed method of reconstructing the wall.