Plans for huge farm shop and eatery on county border
A NEW farm shop and restaurant could be built on an historic estate, with planning applicants citing Brexit as one driving force behind the proposals.
A huge development is being planned for Dunstall, on the edge of Barton under Needwood, near Burton.
Several redundant agricultural buildings associated with the 1,000-acre estate could be bulldozed to make way for the development on a three-acre patch of land at Home Farm.
The plan, if approved, would include a new detached building to form part of the farm shop and restaurant, with car parking and access, drainage, landscaping, as well as a public art and multi-functional open space.
The proposal would also include the conversion of Listed barns to create mixed retail and café/restaurant, educational room and toilets, the change of use of a home to create staff accommodation and change of use of a walled garden to provide outdoor play and leisure space.
Part of the garden would be demolished to enable stepped and ramped pedestrian access.
The Dunstall Estate has applied to East Staf- fordshire Borough Council for permission to make the changes. It could see 23 full-time and 40 part-time jobs created.
Residential lettings bring in important revenue for the estate but the agricultural enterprise remains the most important part of the business, a heritage report submitted alongside the planning application has said.
It says: “It has been well documented over the years, and more so since the Brexit decision to leave the European Union, that the agricultural sector faces increased challenges.
“These pressures are no less at Dunstall Estate where the farming enterprise, along with the residential lets, need to generate enough profit to fund both the enterprise and for capital investment needed to inject in the continued upkeep of the landscape and ageing historic buildings across the estate, including at Home Farm.
“Farm diversification has never been so important to the sector and is increasingly an essential part of a farming enterprise.”
The application says that while the farm remains in agricultural use, this appears to be limited to the operation of the modern farm buildings.
The farmhouse is in residential occupation, however the 19th-century outbuildings are largely redundant and have fallen into a poor state of repair.”
The heritage statement went on to say: “The proposed development demonstrates a sensitive, positive response to the heritage considerations of the site and delivers a scheme which would realise numerous heritage benefits to both the assets within the site as well as those within wider Dunstall estate.
“These principally relate to the opportunity to secure a sustainable use for the Listed Buildings, the demolition of the existing modern barns that detract from the ability to appreciate the Listed Buildings’ significance and the retention of the site’s agricultural character and aesthetic through the informed design of the new building and public spaces.
“Overall, it is considered that the scheme results in the enhancement of the significance of a number of heritage assets – particularly Home Farm and the walled garden – and delivers exceptional design which together will positively impact the understanding of the Dunstall estate’s past, its present role and its future legacy.”
A decision is due to be made by the council in the next few months.
The Dunstall estate dates back to 1152 when Lord Derby owned it. The village of Dunstall today is largely a result of the celebrated Arkwright family who built Dunstall Hall, Old Hall and most of the houses in Dunstall from 1820 to 1850.
The estate was sold by the Arkwrights to the Hardy family who owned the estate from the 1850s to 1950s. It was sold to Sir Robert Douglas who owned the estate until 1997 when he sold it to the current owners, the Clarke family.
Dunstall Hall underwent major refurbishment between 1997 and 2004. Following the death of Sir Stanley Clarke in 2004, Dunstall Hall was sold and, for a time, used as a wedding venue.
The rest of the estate was retained by the Clarke family. The family has since renewed several buildings and homes across the estate.