Homes plan for Errol hall knocked back

Council officers have refused a company’s application to bring a former village hall in Perthshire back into use despite the structure currently being listed on the Buildings at Risk register.

Carse Developments applied for permission to convert Bruce Hall in Errol into housing and office space back in April last year claiming the development would enhance the character of the village’s conservation area.

But planners have now decided to refuse the application over concerns the layout of the development could create conflict between residents, particularly in relation to a proposed bike and bin storage space.

Transport officers also objected to the proposal being passed after noting any new occupants of the property would be limited to just one parking space per household.

The refusal comes after Errol Community Council (ECC) raised a number of concerns about the application during a public consultation including its use of out-of-date information about amenities available in the village.

Supporting documents sent to PKC claimed the old hall was close to a restaurant, a Bank of Scotland and a doctor’s surgery but ECC pointed out both the restaurant and bank are now closed and the nearest doctor’s surgery is actually a mile away from the village centre.

Historic Environment Scotland’s Buildings At Risk register says the hall was originally built as an Anti-Burgher church around 1809 then converted sometime in the 20th Century.

The last entry on the register concerning the building’s condition notes an external inspection carried out in 2014 found its rubble walls to be in a “fair” condition.

However the same inspection also found a number of the hall’s windows had been broken or boarded and the building’s gutters were blocked up and leaking at that time.