Estate's plans to bring empty house back into use are rejected - because it might be home to bats
A landowner's plans to bring a former estate worker's house back into use have been rejected by a planning inspector - because it could affect bats.
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Foxgloves, in Hopes Lane, Bridgnorth, hasn't been occupied from some years and is looking in need of some tender loving investment to bring it up to modern standards.
The building, which had been last used to house a plumber on the Apley Estate in 2016, now has uneven tiles, openings and cracks which could provide a very desirable residence for the protected night flyers.
The work cannot go ahead unless a proper assessment is made, the inspector ruled, rejecting a move to make planning permission conditional on the owners carrying out a bat survey.
Planning inspector Tamsin Law, who visited the property on July 16, decided to back Shropshire Council's decision to reject a planning application. The Apley Estate had appealed to the Planning Inspectorate.
But now the inspector has ruled that the appeal should be dismissed.
