Plan to convert listed country mansion rejected

Plans to turn a derelict country mansion into a care home have been rejected.

Shropshire Council officers agreed the proposals for the Grade II listed Hinton Hall near Whitchurch could "adversely impact" the building.

Applicants Springcare Ltd had hoped to use it as a 43-bedroom nursing home with a 38-room dementia care unit constructed in the grounds of a former walled garden.

The company said about 100 jobs would have been created by the conversion, with about 33 staff on site at any one time.

A report by council conservation officers said the proposal was “not consistent” with the restoration of the building.

The report also noted the 19th Century mansion was in need of repair and it appeared the current owners had carried out no maintenance to slow the building's decay over the last seven or eight years.

But it said this could not be used to justify the proposed work.

The charity Historic Buildings and Places, a statutory consultee on listed building consent applications in England and Wales, also said it had “concerns” with the scheme, and recommended that it was resubmitted with more detailed conservation plans.

It described the building as a "remarkable time capsule and rare example of relatively unaltered country house, despite vandalism and decay".

In rejecting the scheme, council planning officers said it would have harmed the "historic fabric, special architectural and historic interest, character and appearance of the listed building and its outbuildings and walled garden".

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

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