Extensive agricultural building in Peak District beauty spot refused

Natural England had its application for a 31.5 metre by ten metre building at Middle Hay, in Long Lane, Cressbrook Dale, turned down by the Peak District National Park Authority (PDNPA) because the large structure was considered harmful to the landscape and two less conspicuous sites had been identified nearby that could potentially be used instead.

The public body, which advises the Government on matters relating to national environment, grazes Belted Galloway cattle on the site and said it needed to building there to store farm machinery, tools, hay and pregnant cattle prior to calving.

In a planning meeting, agent Rebecca Hilton said: “The steep topography of alternate sites makes both construction and operation infeasible, the movement of livestock and machinery in and out of buildings require flat or gentle sloping land, the extent of work to engineer these sites usable would result not only in additional costs, but negative physical impact on the landscape, caused by the necessary cut and fill.”

She concluded that National England believed the site to the only location that met the ‘operational requirements in a way that is sensitive to the rural context’.

However members questioned whether the building needed to be as large as proposed.

Committee vice chairman Ken Smith said: “The need, I’ve no problem with, it’s the scale of the property and particularly its location in that exposed landscape.

Councillor Andrew McCloy commented: “We’ve got to recognise that there are legitimate land management needs within remote areas of the national park and we’ve got to do our best to meet landowners requirements.”

He agreed however that the scale of the building was a concern.

However Councillor William Armitage said he had hands-on experience of caring for Belted Galloway cattle, and the space proposed was indeed necessary.

“The latest tractors are about nine feet high, that’s one of the reasons why the building is high,” he explained.

“If you’re going to put livestock into a building, which you’ll have to do from time to time, there’s got to be enough room for them to be managed.”

He said the particular breed of cattle needed to be fed on hay to prevent calves growing too big for healthy birth, therefore a high storage building was needed to allow loaders to get in and stack bales.

Ten members of the committee voted in favour of the officers’ recommendation to refuse the application, while one voted against and one abstained.