ALISON DESHAYES PLANNING APPLICATION CONDITIONS RECTORY GRANNY ANNEXE ASBESTOS FLOODING WEALDEN 2019 1478 FULL CONVERSION OUTBUILDINGS PROPERTY FOr SALE IN HERSTMONCEUX SUSSEX

SURFACE DRAINAGE - The northern end of Lime Park, where water feeds down and along the gravel drive heading east for the Rectory, then to the ponds.

The building the subject of a planning application filed by Alison Deshayes on behalf of her elderly father, Peter Townley, is the Old Rectory, once a stable block for horses and buggies for the Baron Von Roemer. Transport before the age of steam and petrol cars was dependent on horses and horses needed a place to sleep and eat.

This is/was essentially a renewal planning application following on from two similar applications by Peter and June Townley from WD/2016/0809/F. Sadly, Mrs Townley passed away, leaving Mr Townley still considering moving to the other side of the courtyard, presumably, meaning that his daughter or grand-daughter could move into his old accommodation to help out with support.

Since then, several other factors have surfaced. Flooding was not mentioned before, nor was damp, potential drainage issues and the existence of an asbestos outbuilding at one end of the range the subject of this application, with large leylandii at the other end of the range of buildings to be converted.

You can see for yourself from the pictures supplied to Wealden District Council, that the Old Rectory courtyard has many puddles when it rains.

The northern end of Lime Park, where water feeds down and along the gravel drive heading east for the Rectory.

Water from the top of the drive wends its way south and downhill to the ponds many feet below. There is flooding in the field adjacent to the Old Rectory on the eastern boundary. water from this field also feeds into the ponds.

Lime Park is a beautiful retreat located just outside the village envelope about 8 miles from the beaches at Pevensey, and 10 miles away from the nearest train station at Polegate.

It is what remains of a country manor house that has been carved up into smaller units and sold off by the then developers: Wickens Estates Limited. Just about all of the neighbours complained when planning applications were lodged to convert the adjacent Generating buildings to domestic use.

The Secretary of State was clear that there should be no new dwellings in Lime Park. The operators of Hertsmonceux Museum cited these Planning Appeals:

1. T/APP/C1435/C/86/1660/P6 - Inspector R P Dannreuther
2. T/APP/C1435/A/89/129411/P5 (WD/88/4640/P) - Inspector C R Wareham
3. T/APP/C1435/A/96/265962/P2 (WD/95/2284/F) – Inspector Raymond Michael

"Please refer to copies of the decision letters supplied in WD/88/4640/P and WD/95/2284/F.

We would refer you to Paragraph 7 of Inspector Wareham’s decision letter where he concludes:

“…I conclude that its conversion to a dwelling would extend and consolidate the residential character of this pocket of development. Like the inspector in the earlier appeal [Dannreuther] I believe that this would harm the rural character of the surrounding area.”

We would also refer you to Paragraphs 43, 44 & 45, and 66 & 67 of Inspector Michael’s decision letter where he concludes:

[43] “ … in my view, there is no definitive evidence which identifies this building as one of historical importance.”

[44] “As a consequence of the above I conclude that Oakwood is a building on no inherent architectural or historic merit, and it would not meet the criteria set out in Policies S21 and S28 of the Structure Plan, Policies 10G and 10H of the adopted Local Plan, and Policy DC10 of the emerging plan.”

[45] “In view of the above considerations, I conclude that the residential use of Oakwood would not be appropriate in this rural location and would not comply with the policies of the development plan set out above.”

[66] “ In light of the foregoing, I therefore conclude on Appeal (A), that residential use of Oakwood would not be appropriate in this rural location, …….

“ …Your client’s proposal lies outside of the designated housing frameworks in the development plan ……”

[67] “ In my view the introduction of such a use would harm the living conditions of the residents in Lime Park because of the inadequacy of the proposed access and parking arrangements.”

It is averred that the comments of the above Inspector’s through 1986 to 1998 are equally valid today in respect of the present proposal – and perhaps more so.

There is no special justification to create a new residential unit within Lime Park and the proposed access and parking arrangements are potentially problematic. Any new residential unit would harm the living conditions and peaceful enjoyment of the residents in Lime Park.

At present Peter Townley is the sole occupier of a house that has more than adequate accommodation and bedrooms for a sizeable family.

For the sake of consistency, the three Inspector’s observations should be a reason for refusal, unless the site in question merits special attention. At this time the former stables have a reasonable and beneficial use, meaning that the site merits no special attention.

In addition to those observations, we should also consider that since the last decision by Inspector Michael, where the historic generating buildings were not at that time recognised for what they are, they are today. Meaning that there is already another residential unit in the Park over and above that considered between 1987 and 1997, such that the situation is tighter parking wise than it was.

Hence, with one eye on conserving the special status of the Park and another on the access difficulties, there is more reason for refusal of another residential unit than there was previously. Hence, seeking an appropriate Planning Condition."

Water from drive enters the courtyard through these brick pillars. Water also comes from the field incline above Herstmonceux Museum from the north-west, though some of this is catered for, the soil carries water subsurface, that nothing can prevent from meeting the retaining wall behind the subject building. One can only seek to reduce that water. Unfortunately, over a time span of some 30 years, Mr and Mrs Townley have neglected their guttering such, that it fell away from the building. The passage between the Rectory and Museum was allowed to grow unchecked, with nettles, ivy and giant brambles causing significant damage to both building by way of a statutory nuisance. The passage was eventually cleared of fauna by volunteers, so assisting the Rectory occupiers to limit damage that they would have been liable for. Had there been litigation to resolve the issue.

This is what is left of the guttering on the northern face of the Old Rectory. Rainwater drips down the back wall of the old stable buildings onto the passage. If these gutters were kept in good condition, the damp complained of would be reduced. The fear is that with Mr Townley being of advanced age, that his health might suffer if the damp were not properly treated. The same can be said of the asbestos outbuilding. Nobody should live in close proximity to asbestos.

The builder/roofer employed by Peter Townley in between April and August of 2019 did not repair the defective guttering, though spent quite a time at the property doing other jobs. You can see that he'd removed the mix of cast iron and plastic gutters, but not replaced them. Presumably, this was on the instruction of his employers. But it does seem a rather puzzling situation. Unless, the applicants are waiting for a decision from the local authority before making any further maintenance plans.

Apart from the defective rainwater goods to the rear of the former stable block, clearly, drainage in the courtyard is a problem. We would suggest installing drains before the trickle from the drive, or even a sub-surface pipe, and maybe more drains in the courtyard. Though there may be drains already and they might simply be blocked.

LIME PARK SHARED DRIVE - The Old Rectory entrance looking from Lime Park on the morning of 11 December 2019, immediately after hearing a commotion in the garden to the rear. There was nobody else around in Lime Park at this hour, except the driver of this vehicle. Fencing was ripped down, now the subject of further investigation.

ROOFING - Repairs to the roof above the lounge area February of 2019. This was quite an extensive renovation. A few years before this in 2014 the same builder replaced the hanging tiles that were clay, with what looks to be sand and cement tiles. In our view a great shame that the originality could not have been preserved. We wonder is another builder might have thought it better to match up to the old tiles, or if it was penny-pinching on the part of the owners.

HANGING TILES - This was the Old Rectory in 2014, with the old clay tiles removed, breather in place and battens applied. Not a bad job. The old clay tiles must have been in very bad condition, or maybe there was an exchange, with the clay tiles from this job going to another site. We've heard of such exchanges before. It is more likely that the original tiles were shot.

PART TILED - The replacement tiles do not match the brickwork or the original tiles in the courtyard, but at least the damp penetration was stemmed. Curious how with damp being a problem for the occupiers in 2014, that damp is being ignored, by allowing the defective guttering to the rear of the complex to continue to leak. It is almost as if they want the passage to be soaked.

Many years ago, the occupiers put in the conservatory that you can see on the left. One of the reasons why the Church sold this property was the huge heating bills. This is an oil fired system that is not climate friendly. We imagine that in a few years, future owners will want to install solar panels and water heaters to modernize. Electric cars will replace petrol and diesel powered cars, meaning that charging points will be needed conveniently in the courtyard.

Prior to this Henry Arnell and Gillian Arnell were residents, naming number 2 Lime Park: Linden House.

East Lodge, Lime Park - Estimated value £ 256,000 (range £204,800 to £307,200)

RECTORY OCCUPIERS 2016 - June and Peter Townley in years gone by. Peter Townley was the controlling mind of Lime Park Estate Limited along with Henry Arnell, who once said to the occupier that he'd like to bulldoze the historic generating buildings. Peter Townley tried for years to purchase the former generating station at a knock down price. Wealden aided and abetted that ambition by way of a conspiracy to deceive the Secretaries of State as to the archaeological find on their doorstep. Yes, this is true. Wealden's officers conspired to misdirect Inspector Raymond Dannreuther between 1986 and 1987. That is one interpretation. It is also true that Peter Townley was in the Royal Marines, and the Inspector was a Royal Navy man. And both men lived in and around Hastings and Bexhill-On-Sea, before the Townleys moved to Herstmonceux. It is likely that both men knew each other. In any even with such connection, a degree of bias was inevitable. Possibly making it easier for George White and Thomas Hoy to dupe the Secretary of State. The Inspector should perhaps have declared an interest and allowed a person with no connection to anyone in Lime Park to hear the Appeal. We doubt that he/they and/or the council, thought that the connection would be discovered.

Company Officers - Current and Previous

Name	Born	Nationality	Role	Appointed	Status
MS SHELAGH CLAIRE LAMBERT	Sep 1953	British	Director	1996-05-19	CURRENT
MR HUW ANDREWS	Aug 1965	British	Director	2014-09-14	CURRENT
CLARE ASKAROFF	Jul 1957	British	Director	2013-07-15	CURRENT
MR PETER GWYN LANGFORD TOWNLEY	Jul 1924	British	Director		CURRENT
MS HARRIET VOGT			Secretary	2014-09-14	CURRENT
GILLIAN POWYS ARNELL	Jan 1935		Director	2002-06-28 UNTIL 2005-09-11	RESIGNED
MR HENRY CHRISTOPHER ARNELL	Apr 1923	British	Director		RESIGNED
MISS MARTHA MORPHEW	Jan 1936	British	Director		RESIGNED
STEPHEN JAMES PHILLIPS	May 1947	British	Director		RESIGNED
MISS CAMILLE ANNE MARIE DE KOK	Mar 1961		Director	2001-04-27 UNTIL 2014-07-15	RESIGNED
MRS LOUISE ELIZABETH JONES	May 1959	British	Director	2006-08-22 UNTIL 2013-09-30	RESIGNED
MILES FALCON INGRAM	Sep 1968	British	Director	1997-07-21 UNTIL 2001-04-26	RESIGNED
MISS CAMILLE ANNE MARIE DE KOK	Mar 1961		Secretary	2005-09-11 UNTIL 2014-07-15	RESIGNED
GILLIAN POWYS ARNELL	Jan 1935		Secretary		RESIGNED

Persons with Significant Control

Name	Active from	Born	Address	Level of control
Mrs Clare Askaroff	2016-07-20	7/1957	Lime Lime Park, Church Road, Hailsham, East Sussex BN27 1RF	Ownership of shares 25 to 50 percent

Related Companies

CompanyName	Address	Accounts Status	Main Company Activity
NICK OF TIME PRODS LTD		TOTAL EXEMPTION	60200 - Television programming and broadcasting activities
ASLAP LIMITED	EAST SUSSEX	TOTAL EXEMPTION	41100 - Development of building projects
EMC MANAGE CONSULTS LID	EAST SUSSEX	TOTAL EXEMPTION	70229 - Management consultancy activities other than financial management
TRICYCLE SCREEN LTD	LONDON ENGLAND	TOTAL EXEMPTION	56302 - Public houses and bars

OCCUPIERS	PROPERTY
Shelagh Claire Lambert	Lime Cottage
Peter Gwyn Langford & June Erben Marion Townley	The Rectory
Camille Anne-Marie De Kok	Lime House
Louise Elizabeth Jones	Linden House
Clare Askaroff	Lime (not a director of LPE Ltd in 2012)
Lime Park Heritage Trust	The Old Generating Works
	East Lodge
Jill Finn	The Rectory
Nigel Flood	The Rectory
WD/2022/0497/F	The Rectory
Lime Park Heritage Trust	Generating Station SMR MES23175

[LEFT] Where gutters and down pipes are working, the area below is drier. [RIGHT] Below the defective gutters on the rear of the subject buildings, the ground below is demonstrably wetter. It would pay the occupiers of the Old Rectory to repair their gutters.

RESPONSIBLE DRAINAGE - Water from the roofs of the Museum building is channeled to down pipes and onto the drive, avoiding build up in the dividing passage.

SURFACE EXIT - The water from the down pipes proceeds west to the gravel drive. This is away from the passage and is considered to be the best way of diverting the water to avoid most of the Old Rectory.

FIRE TRUCKS - Parking and access is sometimes a problem in Lime Park. This picture shows a garbage truck stuck on the north-west corner of the drive in April 2019. Another truck of similar dimensions could not negotiate the same turn in 2016. Hence, this is a known problem area. The Deed Covenants say that the drive must be kept clear at all times. This is especially important for Fire engines. As required by the East Sussex Act.

Herstmonceux is also famous for trugs. These are baskets made from willow boards set in an ash or chestnut frame. However, this tiny village, with its single parade of shops along the busy A271 (Gardner Street), a bottleneck for traffic, is perhaps more famous for The Old Generating Works (Herstmonceux Museum), which together with Rudyard Kipling's Batemans, is the only surviving evidence of the early electricity generating industry in Sussex. This building was included on a Monument Protection Programe (MPP) since it had fallen into a state of disrepair, much as the windmill at Windmill Hill, had been allowed to deteriorate to the stage where that almost fell down. The windmill was saved with the help of a £500,000 grant from the Heritage Lottery fund.

Other buildings of note in the locality include Lime House and Lime Cottage. Lime Cottage is a grade 2 listed building. Lime House is the manor house previously owned by the Baron de Roemer. It was his son Charles who built the generating building and supply network which gave electricity to Herstmonceux in advance of other towns. A pioneer indeed. Before that, the famous travel writer, Augustus Hare lived in the Park.