Sarah Beeny fights council order to demolish ‘mini Downtown Abbey’

Sarah Beeny is having a renovation nightmare creating her own ‘mini Downtown Abbey’.

The homes expert has been tussling with local residents and Somerset Council over planning applications to completely overhaul the rural estate in Stoney Stoke, Somerset, which she bought for £3million in 2018.

Four years after agreeing to knock down the original 1970s farmhouse, Sarah, 52, went ahead with extending the building without permission instead and then applied retrospectively, along with new French doors and a first floor balcony.

But this was knocked back by the council in May.

Now the Property Ladder presenter is fighting back and has put in an appeal with the Planning Inspectorate – with her design team producing a 125-page document to argue their case.

After this was knocked back by the council in May, the Property Ladder presenter is fighting back and has put in an appeal with the Planning Inspectorate

The renovations featured on Sarah’s Channel 4 series New Life in the Country

She’s also put in a retrospective application for a huge treehouse, boathouse and greenhouse, and to change agriculture land into part of the garden. Yet again, this work, which was all done without council permission.

But locals are less than impressed – with Charlton Musgrove Parish Council strongly objecting to all the work she’s had done without permission.

They say that after having being given approval to knock down the farmhouse, this current application to extend it is contradictory.

The council states: ‘We find this retrospective application for an extension to a house that should have been demolished conflicting and would not support either the application to retain the farmhouse or retrospective application for the extension.’

With regards to other additions like the treehouse, the council states: ‘Council remains concerned about the loss of agricultural land.

‘The curtilage is a lot larger than the original application and is not justified for the scale of the development.’

What is also causing concern is that bats have been found present in the farmhouse and the parish council are asking that ‘they build a roost for the bats’.

Beeny and husband Graham Swift have also not got a Natural England European Protected Species license or a valid bat mitigation strategy.

Four years after agreeing to knock down ab=n original 1970s farmhouse, Sarah Beeney, 52, went ahead with extending the building without permission instead

The renovations featured on Sarah’s Channel 4 series New Life in the Country and she added in an interview with The Telegraph: ‘We’ve dug two ponds, built a little boathouse and treehouse and recladded the barn, which I’d like to convert into a film studio. We also have a Victorian-style greenhouse where I grow tomatoes, edible flowers and green beans.’

Earlier this year, she was forced to make a U-turn on plans to convert two barns into four new homes after local objections.

Six complained about the proposed development, accusing her of ‘riding roughshod’ over planning laws.

They also said she had ‘blatantly ignored’ an enforcement notice ordering her to remove earth banks built without planning permission.