Cabin used to cook snails approved for holiday let

The owner of snail supplier business applied to turn the current cooking area into a holiday let.

A Herefordshire supplier of premium edible snails has been given permission to turn a cabin where he cooks them into a single-bedroom holiday let.

Richard Fishbourne of Fownhope, near Hereford, applied for planning permission for the switch in June.

There had been concern from Fownhope Parish Council about the building being considered for residential use, with a local resident worried it could set a precedent for more.

But it was deemed appropriate by Herefordshire Council and the business, which supplies top-end restaurants, will continue to cook snails elsewhere on site.

Fownhope Parish Council said the property was both outside the settlement boundary and within the boundary of the Wye Valley National Landscape, and also "highly visible" from the village.

Herefordshire Council planning officer Joshua Evans concluded that "small-scale holiday accommodation and the associated cooking cabin" were in line with local and national planning policy.

There would be "no significant harm to landscape character, residential amenity or protected views", the officer added.

A condition with the approval prevents its future use as a home, as well as restricting lighting and noise.

Mr Fishbourne previously said that getting permission to diversify a rural business "can be an uphill battle".

His business of supplying top-end restaurants will continue, as the snail cooking operation is being relocated to an already permitted hay store at the site.

This news was gathered by the Local Democracy Reporting Service which covers councils and other public service organisations.