Owners of a care home have been ordered to tear down ‘Britain’s most luxurious shed’ from a back garden after planning bosses ruled it was in fact a bungalow.
The 11ft tall brick structure has been built at the back of Longmore Nursing Home in Solihull, West Midlands, leaving residents in the home ‘staring at a brick wall’.
Planning officers originally recommended approval be given for the retrospective application, submitted by the owners of the care home, to build the ‘storage shed’ at the premises.
But angry councillors accused the developers of ‘taking the Michael’ and said ‘we will not be taken for mugs’ because the L-shaped building was ‘clearly a bungalow’.
Housing developers have been ordered to tear down ‘Britain’s most luxurious shed’ (pictured) from the back of Longmore Nursing Home in Solihull, West Midlands, after planning bosses ruled it was a bungalow
Solihull councillors have now refused permission for the retention and extension of the structure meaning it now faces demolition.
Residents have been left torn by the decision with some branding it ‘Britain’s most luxurious shed’ while others said it couldn’t be a bungalow as you’d ‘struggle to fit your granny in.’
Mum-of-one Rebecca Moore, 34, who lives on the street, said: ‘It has to be Britain’s most luxurious shed. You can tell it won’t be used for storing your lawnmower.
‘I know the care home residents next door were kicking up a fuss because they used to look out onto some lovely gardens and now they are staring at brick walls.
‘I’m not surprised they have refused permission for it, but how did it get built in the first place?’
Planning officers originally recommended approval be given for the retrospective application, submitted by the owners of the care home (pictured), to build the ‘storage shed’ at the premises
During the meeting last week, it was argued that cavity wall insulation and bricks for damp-proofing called into question the intended use of the building as a shed.
The applicant maintained it was a small extension which had been built on an existing outbuilding within the grounds.
In the report presented, it was argued the scheme would ‘not result in unacceptable impact to nearby residential premises.’
A planning statement said: ‘There is ample grounds surrounding the building and all parts of the proposal are at least one metre from the boundaries.’
But chairman of the planning committee Richard Holt told the meeting: ‘It is not a storage shed. We are not going to be taken for being mugs in Solihull, clearly it’s a bungalow.’
While Green Party councillor Maggie Allen, who is also deputy leader of the opposition, called the building ‘the most luxurious shed’ she had ever seen.
However, angry councillors accused the developers of ‘taking the Michael’ and said ‘we will not be taken for mugs’ because the L-shaped building was ‘clearly a bungalow’. Pictured: The submitted plans for the shed extension
The structure now faces being pulled down after all nine members voted to reject the retrospective planning application.
Tory Mark Parker, who represents Shirley East, said after the meeting: ‘It should not have been built at all.
‘It is a substantial brick building and you can see it is not a shed, it is a bungalow, which has what is necessary for a dwelling.
‘It has all the bits required for human habitation like insulation in brick cavities, spending far more money than what is required for storing your tools in a shed.
‘My second objection is that elderly residents at Elizabeth House Care Home are now looking out on to a brick wall.
Councillor Parker also said that time is now being given to the applicants to appeal the decision. ‘If the decision of the committee is upheld they will have to demolish the building,’ he said. Pictured: A view of the brick shed from behind the care home property
‘I think the message is to follow the rules and do not apply for retrospective planning permission once you’ve built something on the sneak.’
Councillor Parker also said that time is now being given to the applicants to appeal the decision.
‘If the decision of the committee is upheld they will have to demolish the building,’ he said.
MailOnline has approached Longmore Nursing Home for comment.
In the refusal document published on Wednesday (7/4), councillors said: ‘This retrospective application for the retention of a garden shed causes a harmful impact to neighbour amenity to Elizabeth House Care Home for reason of its scale and mass which causes an overbearing effect and loss of outlook to bedroom windows immediately adjacent to the development at the care home.’