Norfolk homeowner beats council over 'harsh' fence

Chris Dinnage, who lives in Bobbins Way - a cul-de-sac in Swardeston, was hit with enforcement action over his 1.6m close-boarded fence and stone-filled pillars.

The small community is a short distance south of Norwich and it is known as the birthplace of Norfolk war hero Edith Cavell.

Edith Cavell was born in Swardeston and its village sign commemorates her (Image: Newsquest)

A retrospective application was lodged with South Norfolk Council but it was met with objections.

Norfolk County Council worried it would impinge drivers' views due to the height and asked for it to be set back.

The village parish council also objected, calling it "harsh and overpowering" - a view the district council agreed with, who decided to refuse permission on the grounds it was detrimental to the street scene and caused danger to drivers.

READ MORE: Norfolk homeowner wins battle over 'unacceptable' fence

It led Mr Dinnage to fight back against the decision and an appeal was lodged with the Planning Inspectorate.

In his appeal, he argued it was similar in style to a number of fences surrounding nearby homes.

The parish council called the fence harsh and overpowering (Image: Google)

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He also said none of his neighbours had any complaints and that if they had, he would have reduced the size to avoid any upset.

After the Planning Inspectorate reviewed the decision, they concluded that there was not enough evidence to substantiate Norfolk County Council's claims drivers' views were restricted.

In addition, they decided as there was no uniformity of style and design of the surrounding homes' fencing and borders, the fence did not affect the character of the street scene.

Mr Dinnage will be allowed to keep his fence after winning the appeal.