New home plan for historic farmhouse garden is blocked

Plans to build a house on the grounds of a large historic farmhouse have been refused.

Jonathan Mulroy applied to Rochdale Council for planning permission to build a four-bedroom home and car port at the rear of Standrings House, on the corner of Bagslate Moor Road and Greenview Drive, Norden.

Grade-II listed Standrings House was built in 1791 and was originally a moorland farmstead. It was converted to a home in the 1930s.

Planning permission has already been granted to create a new access in the boundary wall from Greenview Drive.

Planning documents submitted by Paul Butler Associates, on behalf of Mark Bell Architects Ltd, stated: “The proposals involve the creating of a separate plot at the bottom of the garden, more specifically the proposed house would be built in the south-eastern corner with access from Greenview Drive.

“The proposed gate application would integrate into the character of the existing house and materials in order to create a secondary access for maintenance to the substantial rear garden.

“The gates would be very much in keeping with the existing main gates and blend into the local character of the wall and surroundings.

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“The change of use from a farm in agricultural use in a rural setting to the mid-status residence of later periods shows not only the changing of the site, but the transformation of the area from rural to suburban. It highlights the influx of wealthy merchants and the loss of farmers in this part of Rochdale.

“When originally constructed, the property sat in a largely agricultural setting to the south with the moors beyond; none of this context survives today and the farmhouse and barn are somewhat divorced from the historic landscape.”

The council’s heritage officer noted: “There are concerns regarding the scale, massing and design of the proposed dwelling and proposed outbuilding. It is considered that it would compete with and detract from Standrings House.

“It would result in less-than-substantial harm to this designated heritage asset, as a result of intrusive development within its setting.

“To overcome these concerns, the proposed dwelling would need to be reduced substantially in size and scale, so that it is clearly subordinate to Standrings House.

“It would likely need to be a modest single-storey structure.”

A planning officer added: “There are no public benefits identified as a result of the development proposals, with only a limited benefit arising from the delivery of a single market dwelling, which does not outweigh the identified harm to the designated heritage asset.”

Refusing the application, the council said: “The proposed development, by reason of its overall scale, massing, and architectural treatment, would appear as a dominant and visually intrusive form of development within the setting and clearly delineated grounds of Standrings House, a Grade II listed building.

“As such, the development would cause less-than-substantial harm to the significance of the designated heritage asset. No public benefits have been identified which would outweigh this harm.”

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