A PLAN to knock down stables and replace them with a four-bedroom house has been turned down after it ignited a debate about the green belt.

Councillors went against their planning officers’ recommendation and refused the scheme for knocking down the stables and building a home at Fernhill, Crossgate Moor, Durham.

Read more: Family-run Durham farm to sell Christmas trees - here's when you can get yours

The Durham County Council planning meeting heard warnings that approving the scheme in the green belt could open protected land up to developers.

The City of Durham Parish Council and City of Durham Trust both objected to the plan.

Dr Grenville Holland from the parish council said the proposal failed to meet a raft of policies, bringing potential damage to the green belt and an area of great landscape value.

He said: “Many of these policies have been hard-won and must not now be forfeit.

“Fundamentally you do not build houses in the green belt unless there are exceptional circumstances. Put simply Fernhill does not qualify for any one of these exceptions.

“The proposed building is new and is higher than and larger than the present stables.

“The construction of a four-bedroom house, because of its size and mass, however nicely made, will intrude into this lovely landscape setting.”

Michael Hurlow from the trust said the house was “undeniably larger” than the existing building, doubling the size of the developed area.

He said: “Just because the public cannot easily see this does not mean it does not have an impact on openness.

“To allow this application will be to open up the green belt to other developers.

“This must be seen as a very worrying precedent.

“Protecting green space should be something that is increasingly needed as authorities consider their response to the climate emergency.”

The developer argued the plan was designed to comply with green belt policy with a unique and sensitive design.

Applicant Paul Bracewell said: “We’ve worked hard to make sure the officers are all content that this scheme complies with policy.”

Planning officers concluded the house would have a similar footprint to the existing stables, would be built into the hillside, have very low visual impact and would not have a greater impact on the green belt’s openness.

But Councillor Jonathan Elmer said: “Residents in the city have battled long and hard to preserve the green belt.

“This is going to be larger so it would have an impact on the openness of the green belt.

“In this situation there are no very special circumstances. This does therefore classify as inappropriate development.

“Approval of this application would set a precedent and make it more difficult to defend the green belt from future development.”

Rival motions were put forward to approve and reject the plan. Councillors on the planning committee eventually voted 7-3 to refuse it.

Keep up to date with all the latest news on our website, or follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

You can also follow our dedicated County Durham Facebook page for all the latest in the area by clicking here.

For all the top news updates from right across the region straight to your inbox, sign up to our newsletter here.

Have you got a story for us? Contact our newsdesk on newsdesk@nne.co.uk or contact 01325 505054