We used an appeals firm to get permission for our barn’s new windows
RETIRED couple Lynda and Douglas Mein and their neighbours endured a gruelling 16 months before getting permission to install replacement windows in their three barn conversions in Burleydam, Cheshire.
Lynda, 60, says: ‘We made enquiries about whether we would need planning permission in September 2014, which we did. We applied about a year ago and had it refused in April last year.’
The three households, whose properties are all set off the road, were desperate to change the wooden windows for something more weatherproof.
Lynda, who used to work in the music business, says: ‘There is not much distance between our properties and the Welsh coast so the windows get weather beaten, are draughty and rot quickly.’
The Meins and their neighbours wanted to put in high-quality PVC double-glazed replacements that look almost identical to the original timber – but the planner in
charge of their case took against the idea and rejected the application.
Lynda says: ‘We even had a mock-up set of windows made to show the planner but he didn’t come and look at them.’
She adds: ‘One of the neighbours replaced their windows with timber and they were rotten in two years.
‘How could they refuse us installing ones that look like the originals, stop the wind howling through them, are more secure and keep the noise out? They are specialist windows that have been used in many conservation areas.’
In frustration, the couple contacted appeals specialist Just Planning, which took on their case.
The Inspectorate accepted the appeal. It decided the council was overly concerned about design and believed the residents’ quality of life was equally important.