Omaze bids to end planning saga at £6m prize home

Retrospective plans have been lodged for a Norfolk house marketed as being worth £6m in a prize draw

The ongoing saga of a woman's wait for the keys to a £6m mansion she won has ramped up after retrospective plans for the luxury home were lodged.

Prize draw firm Omaze is fighting to avoid the demolition of parts of the house in Blakeney, on the north Norfolk coast, after various planning breaches were discovered.

The complications emerged prior to the house being won in March in the draw, part of the proceeds of which will go to charity.

But now Omaze has lodged the required planning application with North Norfolk District Council (NNDC) in the hope of salvaging the situation.

Vicky Curtis-Cresswell and her husband Dale, from South Wales, won the Blakeney home in the Omaze prize draw

Former Miss Wales finalist Vicky Curtis-Cresswell, along with her husband and daughter, are still waiting for the keys to the property but Omaze has maintained it will cover any costs.

A spokesperson for the company said: "Omaze continues to work with NNDC in relation to recommendations made regarding the property in Norfolk - and has submitted a retrospective planning application.

"Omaze reiterates that it guarantees no house winner would ever have to incur any costs whatsoever to remedy any historical planning issue.

"Omaze further guarantees that all house prizes are transferred to winners with good and marketable title."

An NNDC spokesperson confirmed the retrospective application from Omaze was received on Tuesday.

The plans are an attempt to retain the single-storey extension added to the home's east elevation, as well as the swimming pool, tennis court, summerhouse and four-bay garage that were built.

The NNDC spokesperson added: "The application is currently in the process of being validated. Once validated, all the relevant documents will be available to view on the public portal.

"If valid upon receipt it is expected to appear on the portal as early as next week but will be longer if there are further requirements."

The property's swimming pool is part of the planning dispute

Once the plans are made available publicly, they will be open to comments and scrutiny from local residents and the relevant local authorities, as is standard in the planning process.

They will then be considered and voted on by NNDC's planning committee at a later date.

Mrs Curtis-Cresswell, who was originally from south Wales, has said she intends to sell the house, having been searching for a rental property while living at her in-laws' three-bedroom house when she had won the prize.

Omaze buys luxury properties for its prize draws and raised more than £4m for Comic Relief through selling entries for the Blakeney competition.

The for-profit company, founded in the US, gives at least 17% of the money raised through its prize draws to charities.

A similar situation, not involving Omaze, played out just a few miles along the Norfolk coast in the village of Cley next the Sea, which led to a luxury house having to be rebuilt.

West End producer Adam Spiegel became embroiled in that lengthy planning dispute as the property was built larger than the approved designs, costing him millions of pounds.