York tea room sign must be removed from historic building - council

More than 260 people wrote to the council in support of the application to keep the York tea room's sign

The owners of a cafe in York have been ordered to remove its sign after it was refused planning permission.

The Old York Tea Room on Goodramgate is located on the Grade I-listed Lady Row, which dates back to 1316.

The business applied for permission to keep the sign and a teapot image painted above the entrance to the cafe.

More than 260 people wrote letters in support of the application, but York Council said the sign "detracts" from the history of the building.

Refusing planning permission, the council said in a report that giving it the go-ahead could lead to a "precedent for further signage".

The building on York's Lady Row, otherwise known as Our Lady's Row, dates back to 1316 and is Grade I-listed

But planning officers admitted the current sign, while unauthorised, caused "less than substantial harm to the character and fabric" of the building.

The owners of the cafe, on the oldest surviving row of houses in the city, said they were "very upset" by the decision and planned to lodge an appeal against it.

They said the sign had been hand-painted by a local artist on new render to ensure the fabric of the building was protected.

A cafe spokesperson said it was "the most sympathetic way of doing the sign so as not to damage the building".

"We have received so much support from residents, it has been unbelievable. We feel as though York has wrapped its arms around us," they added.