Wellingborough couple in last ditch plea to council for 'common sense' as deadline for unauthorised fence removal looms

A Wellingborough couple who erected a £2,500 fence outside their Irthlingborough Road home have been given a final deadline for its removal or it will be dismantled for them and they will foot the bill.

Rebecca and Simon Whittaker moved into their 'dream house' in December 2017 and set about enhancing security around the three-and-a-half-acre property including replacing the garden's front-facing 1.4m post and rail fence with a 2m high featherboard one.

The property is bordered by the Swanspool Brook on one side and the River Ise on the other, forming an island, the site of the ancient East Mill mentioned in the Domesday Book.

To shield them from the traffic on the route to nearby Leyland Trading Estate, the Whittakers installed a replacement fence in April 2019, but it was not until they received a letter from Wellingborough Council did they realise that they had needed planning permission.

Rebecca, 45, who works in an operational support role for a health trust, said: "It's our dream house, our paradise but we've had syringes thrown over the fence as well as cans of coke and beer, and people used our front garden as a toilet. We put up the fence to make it safe, secure and private - it's our front garden."

In August 2018, handyman Simon re-used the old posts and existing gravel boards to add the new fencing to create a safe space for their dog, chickens and ducks, and the couple were surprised by the initial letter from the council. which arrived approximately two months later.

Simon, 52, said: "Someone had complained because they had to slow down going round the bend. So we applied retrospectively for planning permission."

The couple's application was turned down with the report stating 'by virtue of its height, length and design, the fencing ... is considered to be an incongruous and obtrusive addition at this location and is a feature that is completely out of character with the semi-rural area in which it is located'; and that 'the development obstructs flood flows thereby increasing the risk of flooding in the surrounding area'.

An appeal to the planning inspectorate to overturn the decision failed.

Rebecca said: "We asked them to come to the house on a site visit. They came out and we weren't allowed to speak to them. But they said no and upheld the decision ordering us to remove the fence by January 2020.

"We asked for an extension because we didn't have any money. They gave us until April 2020, but of course that was in the middle of Covid.

"Simon was furloughed and we just didn't have the money. We needed to get the materials together but because of Covid we couldn't get them.

The couple have now been given until July 31 to remove the 40m-long stretch of fence but would like another extension to allow to plant a hedge in the correct season..

Simon said: "We're frustrated. We're not wealthy people. All this over a fence is driving me mad.

"We spoke to them saying that we'd put in hedging - have you any objection to that? But the Enviroment Agency said no to the hedge and we could only have post and rail with a livestock fence behind it. Well that's no use because the chickens would escape and people will climb on it.

"The fence has got to come down in its entirety. They are being bullish. We know it's got to come down. They said that if we don't they will prosecute us and take us to court, which sounds like a threat."

Rebecca added: "I feel threatened and bullied by it to be honest. How many other people live the same distance as we do from the Swanspool Brook? We want something that is tidy and to maintain it. If we had no fence and a couple of old battered cars they wouldn't care.We would like them to use some common sense."

A spokesman for Wellingborough Council said: "The unauthorised fence was erected without planning permission and following a planning appeal, the applicant was refused permission because the fence does not comply with policy and obstructs flood flows.

"An enforcement notice served in April 2019 has not been adhered to and the council has been working closely, supportively and flexibly with the applicant for its removal and has a duty to ensure this happens by the extended deadline of 31st July 2020. This approach has taken in to account the affect and impact of Covid-19."

The full planning decision can be seen by clicking here.

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