THE owner of a farm in Llancloudy has applied to Herefordshire planners for a Certificate of Lawfulness in connection with an outbuilding that was constructed during the pandemic lockdown without planning permission.

Dr James Hull, the owner of Hill Farm since 2008, said that the new building, known as The Lodge, is used as an office and is ancillary to the main farmhouse.

He states he has carried out extensive refurbishment of the wider site including the redevelopment and extension of the original farmhouse and the construction of a new agricultural building.

Dr Hull said: “I began building The Lodge without the benefit of planning permission in April 2020 and completed in September the same year. I mistakenly believed that the development was permitted development.

“I subsequently applied for retrospective planning permission for the lodge in July 2024. However, the application was refused on January 20 this year for two reasons, namely that the planning authority said the building was not ancillary to the host dwelling, and that the application did not demonstrate that the development would not give rise to likely significant effects on the River Wye Special Area of Conservation.”

The completed building is single storey and provides an open plan office/living/dining area with three bedrooms, and a plant room.

The building has a low height with a shallow monopitched roof. The front of the building Is glazed, taking in the views over the lake while the remaining elevations are timber clad.

There is no parking or even a vehicle access to the Lodge and can only be accessed on foot.

“Since the completion of The Lodge, it has been used in a manner ancillary to my home. I use the building as a home office and for relaxing near to the lake, particularly after fishing on the lake,” said Dr Hull.

“The proximity to the lake and the views afforded over the lake determined the location of The Lodge. Using The Lodge has been of great comfort to me. The Lodge is never let, even on a short-term basis. It is akin to an annex.”

Dr Hull concluded: “The Lodge is being used in a manner which is ancillary to the farmhouse, my main place of residence, for a period of time in excess of four years, whereby it is now immune from enforcement action.”

Comments on the application, number P252352/U can be made on Herefordshire Council’s planning portal until September 24.