Hannah Ingram-Moore and her husband had appealed against an order for the demolition of the unauthorised spa at their home.
Captain Sir Tom Moore’s daughter has lost an appeal against the demolition of an unauthorised spa at her home.
Hannah Ingram-Moore and her husband had appealed against the demolition order by Central Bedfordshire Council.
They used the Captain Tom Foundation name on the first plans, with revised plans then turned down.
The organisation, which was founded in June 2020 in honour of Sir Tom – after he shot to fame by doing sponsored laps of his garden during the COVID pandemic – is currently being investigated by the Charity Commission.
The investigation is unrelated to the £38m Sir Tom raised for NHS charities with his own fundraising drive – for which he was knighted by the late Queen in July 2020.
The Second World War veteran died in January 2021, at the age of 100, after being treated for pneumonia for some time and then testing positive for coronavirus.
Read more:
What has happened and why is there an inquiry?
NHS charity distances itself from foundation
Later that year, Ms Ingram-Moore and her husband were granted permission to build a Captain Tom Foundation Building on the grounds of their £1.2m home in Marston Moretaine, Bedfordshire.
Plans for the site said it would be used partly “in connection with The Captain Tom Foundation and its charitable objectives”.
However, a subsequent retrospective application a year ago for a larger building containing a spa pool was refused by the planning authority.
Planning bosses at Central Bedfordshire Council said an enforcement notice requiring the demolition of the “now-unauthorised building” was issued in March this year.
In documents appealing against the notice, the family said the building was “no more overbearing” than a previously approved planning application and the “heights are the same”.
It also said the building was set at the back of the site, meaning it was not an issue for public view.
However, the Planning Inspectorate, to whom Ms Ingram-Moore appealed against the demolition notice, has now ruled that the “form of the new building is disproportionately broad and is at odds with the pleasingly domestic scale” of the main house – which is a listed building.
“I find the erection of the new building erodes the positive contribution that the setting, provided by the extensive grounds, makes to the [main property],” the inspector, Diane Fleming, found.
However, she found that the building had not caused “unacceptable harm” to the wider neighbourhood, as it was largely out of view from the property’s grounds.
Ms Fleming also addressed a suggestion, put forward on behalf of the family at the appeal, that the new building would enable “Captain Tom’s story to be enjoyed by the public” and be “supported by the appellant’s personal charity work”.
This included the suggestion of opening up the spa pool for rehabilitation sessions for elderly people in the area once or twice a week.
“I accept that the appellant’s intentions are laudable however, it has not been demonstrated in any detail how all of this would work in practice. In the absence of any substantiated information, I find the suggested public benefit would therefore not outweigh the great weight to be given to the harm to the heritage asset,” she said in her ruling.
The family has three months to comply with the order.
William Turner is a seasoned U.K. correspondent with a deep understanding of domestic affairs. With a passion for British politics and culture, he provides insightful analysis and comprehensive coverage of events within the United Kingdom.
