Planning consent for a small bungalow was granted consent in 1962 in the parish of The Leigh, near Tewkesbury. The decision notice had an agricultural occupancy condition attached to it as it was located in Open Countryside. The bungalow was occupied by a retire farmer until he was unable to manage in his own home and the control and ownership passed to his niece. His niece and her husband had no connection with agriculture and despite inheriting and owning the bungalow they were unable to live in it due to the occupancy condition. Their ambition was to renovate the bungalow and move in as soon as possible.

 

There was no longer any land associated with the bungalow and the property had been empty for a number of months so time was of the essence to get the condition removed. However the bungalow was still located in an Open Countryside location and the removal of the occupancy condition was not guaranteed. Tewkesbury Borough Council had no planning policy to act as guidance for the removal of the occupancy condition.

 

As the owners of the bungalow had just inherited it, they had no intention to sell and therefore a marketing exercise would contravene the Consumer Protection regulations. As an alternative Carver Knowles undertook a direct mailing to assess the need for agricultural workers in the area. Over 240 farmers in a 10km radius were contacted to identify if this bungalow would meet their needs. Several respondents indicated their need for dwellings but that this bungalow would not meet their specific needs or it was beyond their affordability.

 

Tewkesbury Borough Council granted consent for the removal of the occupancy of the condition in the normal timescales meaning that the condition was removed within 6 months of instruction.