Whitchurch Town Council has objected to a controversial application to build nine houses in the conservation area once owned by one of the famous judges of all time, Lord Denning.

The council development committee voted against the plan on the grounds that it is on a conservation area, it doesn’t support the neighbourhood plan, it is not in the housing allocation etc.

Nine houses were proposed for land adjacent to Church Street at The Lawn, the former home of noted judge Lord Denning. Concerns were raised over the impact the development would have on the conservation area, as well as on the environment and traffic through the town.

Cllr Tracy Woodruff said she sees very little for residents of Whitchurch or Whitchurch itself from this development.

“The reason we have a conservation area is to protect these spaces. I do agree with the views issue with our rural tourism. We need people coming into Whitchurch to enjoy Whitchurch as it is.”

Cllr John Buckley said he is extremely concerned about the plan.

“There is a great deal of emotion attached to the site. And many people do consider it an integral part of our town’s character.”

He also expressed concerns about the access of residents of the new houses to shops and services across B3400.

Although the applicant, Paul Denning, tried to convey the positives of the proposal, the council decided to move against it.

He said: “The new mid-sized houses will bring nine new families to the heart of Whitchurch. Imagine the stimulus to the community shops pubs and restaurants. It uses private underutilised land in the centre of Whitchurch within the system and boundary where planning policy supports residential development. This is far more inclusive and preferable to out-of-town developments.”

Mr Denning also said he fears many objections have been generated by misleading assertions in campaigns.

Reacting to this, Cllr Andrew Klemz said: “I think there’s an appropriate form of development for this site. I support the applicant in what they are saying about planning policy. It is within the settlement area. I think a scheme could be designed, but unfortunately I don’t think it’s this one.”

Earlier in the meeting, Marion Brinton, a resident of Whitchurch and a heritage professional, spoke against the plan and said it would harm the conservation area.

Ms. Brinton, who works for Historic England, said: “To build on the site would undermine the low density of the area will introduce inappropriate development which is too dense and too uniform into the street scene and result in a loss of an open space. In short, it would harm the conservation area.

“Our river, trees and biodiversity, listed buildings in the conservation area – these are what made Whitchurch special, and we should work together to keep it special.”

The Lawn and Lord Denning?

The Lawn is a Grade II listed house in Whitchurch, built in the 1800s. It sits in extensive grounds in the heart of the town.

It was bought by Lord Denning, who began carrying out a series of works on the property in 1963. This included the demolition of buildings on the estate, and the conversion of stables into a home.

Lord Denning himself was born as Alfred Denning in Whitchurch in 1899, subsequently being called to the bar in 1923. He became a Judge in 1944, and was appointed to the High Court, and subsequently sat in the Court of Appeals and as a House of Lords Law Lord, the predecessor to the judges who sit on the Supreme Court today.

He made a number of contributions to British law, including reforms of divorce law, and was the author of a report into a political espionage scandal known as the Profumo affair.

He died at the age of 100 in 1999.