24 October 2019

Planning is filed with Stratford District Council

We have made the press! Today in the Stratford Herald it was reported that planning has now been registered with the council for the development of Oversley Castle. While the article is quite straightforward, the focus for the headline is on the demolition, rather than on the exciting proposal we have in store for its replacement.

When I originally moved to the site in 2017, the previous developer had plans to convert the existing building into five small duplex apartments. This proved to be financially unviable and then it was proposed to demolish the building without sharing plans and proposals for its replacement. I saw what was proposed and suffice to say the local community was right to be concerned, especially as the proposal centred around five independent large houses.

Certainly, I feel what we are proposing now offers an opportunity to do something quite dramatic and offer the local community something that is much more in keeping with the existing folly while making the most of modern British architecture. My ambition post-completion is while the existing building wasn’t of interest to English Heritage as an independent listing, that the new building will be.

What I would like to add to the article is while I am developing the building, it is also home for my family and I. I am conscious that how you approach a project such as this is certainly different than if you are looking at it as a developer wanting to make a financial gain.