Dream home may have to come down

A Shropshire couple could see the dream home they built by hand be torn down following a planning dispute. John and Maureen David started building the three-storey home in the Ironbridge Gorge in February last year.

But parish councillors complained the townhouse in High Street, Coalport, was an "inappropriate development" for Shropshire's World Heritage site and not in line with the original planning permission.nextpage

Permission was granted for a house in 2003. But a retrospective application to make the home wider submitted last year was rejected by planners. Council bosses moved in and slapped an order on the former engineer to stop work on the land beside Brewery Cottage.nextpageAt a planning inquiry headed by a government inspector yesterday, Councillor David Edwards, from Madeley Parish Council, said residents had asked him to voice their concerns at the appeal. Planning Inspector Paul Griffiths is expected to give his decision in three to four weeks time.