Blakeney Omaze mansion plans to be examined by councillors

A £6m mansion at the centre of a planning dispute is due to be re-examined by councillors.

A woman from South Wales won the property in Blakeney, Norfolk, in a raffle by Omaze earlier this year, which raised money for Comic Relief.

But the house did not have the necessary planning permission for various features, including a swimming pool and tennis court.

North Norfolk District Council had recommended a retrospective planning application be approved, but a committee will re-examine it first on 16 October.

Conservative Victoria Holliday filed the call-in papers which means the application will be assessed by councillors.

She is a local district councillor for Blakeney and sits on the development committee.

Holliday has said she is worried a “distinctive group” of pine trees have been felled to make way for the swimming pool and a wildflower meadow may have been lost to the tennis court.

The changes are “out of keeping with the wild and unspoilt nature” of the coastal property, she has said.

Blakeney is within an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, which means there are strict controls on development.

Omaze applied to retain the extension to the east of the mansion, called Larkfields, as well as a four-bay garage, outbuildings, the swimming pool and tennis court.

Vicky Curtis-Cresswell won the prize in March this year and Omaze has maintained it will cover any costs.

Omaze did not build the property but later discovered it was in breach of planning rules after an anonymous member of the public informed the district council.

The company remains the official owner of Larkfields – a property built to resemble mansions in the Hamptons area of New York State.