Homeowner Allowed to Keep Two-Storey Extension on Farmhouse Without Planning Permission

A HOMEOWNER will be allowed to keep a two-storey kitchen and bedroom extension that he added to the side of his farmhouse without planning permission. 
Ben Sutton replaced the two-storey barn and hay loft that was at the side of his home at White House Farm in Maypole near Monmouth with the extension that includes a kitchen and family room on the ground floor and a bedroom, bathroom and dressing room on the first. 
A single-storey storage barn was also demolished as part of the development that was completed at the end of May. An application for planning permission was only made in July 2023.
Monmouthshire County Council planning officer Helen Etherington said extensions to homes in the open countryside are allowed but they normally shouldn’t increase the size of the property by more than 50 per cent.
She said the work to White House Farm amounted to an increase of 57 per cent, but it could be allowed as “on balance, the increased volume, even though more than 50 per cent, is not considered harmful to the main dwelling or surrounding landscape”.
The extension wasn’t considered to be an over development as it replaced a previous two-storey building and is part of a collection of other farm buildings and is described as “well back” from any public highway and the nearest neighbours are more than 200 metres away. 
The main house is painted render and the walls of the new extensions are a combination of render, to match the existing dwelling, and stone. The stone on the north elevation is in keeping with the material of the former attached farm building and the render on the other elevations follows the materials of the house. 
A planning condition will require that bat boxes, a bird box, insect habitats and hedgehogs houses are installed, and retained, as biodiversity enhancements.  
Although an extra bedroom has been created there is no increase in occupancy and as a result the development isn’t considered as adding to phosphate levels in the area. ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​