A couple’s self build plans for an environmentally friendly mansion in Herefordshire have been resubmitted to councillors.
Phil and Jackie Perry’s plans for a 12-hectare hillside site near Ullingswick, between Hereford and Bromyard, include six bedrooms, a gym, wine room, swimming pool and a jacuzzi.
Their initial application for planning permission was rejected in September 2021 by Herefordshire Council due to a lack of information “demonstrating the outstanding nature of the design”.
National Planning Policy Framework dictates isolated new homes built in open countryside must be of “exceptional quality”, and the Perrys’ new application for The Flow House and accompanying landscaping addresses these concerns.
Having submitted the proposal in November to Design Midlands, an independent review panel of design experts, the panel concluded: “Overall, this is now an exceptional design bringing so many things together well, proportions and elevations, materials, sustainability and in particular a special relationship between the building and a significantly enhanced surrounding landscape.”
Plans "Should Achieve Planning Permission"
The development would also include the creation of a carp pond and significant ecological enhancements designed to provide a habitat for a range of faunal species, including protected, rare and notable species.
In an early council debate on the proposal, Herefordshire Council’s historic buildings officer raised no objections to the development on heritage grounds, saying "no harm has been identified to the nearby conservation area or the setting of nearby listed buildings".
But local councillor Jonathan Lester said that the “sheer scale means it cannot respect the character of adjoining listed and historic developments”. And Ocle Pychard group parish council chairman Giles Blackmore called it “an intrusive building whose modernist design is not in keeping with our rural location”.
In the resubmission to Herefordshire Council, the Perrys' planning consultants, Tompkins Thomas, said: “In conclusion, it is our view that the proposals are outstanding design and meet the requirements of Paragraph 80(e) of the Framework.
"The only matter of disagreement is now, in our view, beyond reproach, the design having been confirmed as exceptional by an independent design review panel. The proposal therefore complies with the Development Plan in the round and should achieve planning permission.”
Comments on the plans can be made until 20 May.
