SUPPORT from a neighbour and the parish council has endorsed a planning application to Dorset Council for timber tourist cabins on a Drimpton farm site.

Both say the business diversification makes sense and should not affect those living nearby.

A resident from Post Office Yard, which adjoins the site, said a previous conversion on the farm, of The Old Engine House, was carried out to a high standard with visitors making no impact on residents.

“Visitors to holiday accommodation bring business into the village and to nearby centres, especially Broadwindsor, without having any noticeable adverse impact through traffic or otherwise.

"This is an application which makes perfect sense and I support it,” said the neighbour in a letter to Dorset Council's planning team.

The application, submitted in February but still under consideration, is for a change of use of a small pasture from agricultural to two temporary timber-built holiday cabins at Bridge Farm, Chard Road, Drimpton. Each unit will sleep two people and will have self-catering facilities including a kitchenette, bedroom, toilet, and shower.

The proposal is said to not be visible from neighbouring properties with no outdoor lighting proposed and parking on site for four cars plus cycles, with electric vehicle charging points. The land sits within the Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty but is outside the village development boundary.

Each cabin is designed for year-round use although the word ‘temporary’ is used in its application because the foundation for the buildings will be on a removable groundscrew system.

Pre-application advice from a planning officer was not to encourage the application “given the location of the units on an open green field in an unrelated and isolated location.”

The farm says the proposal has been re-designed since those comments were made and will be as “green” as possible including solar panels and water saving features with the site having a habitat enhancement plan which should result in a biodiversity net gain.

The farm has operated a converted engine shed for tourist accommodation since 2017 and says the new cabins will help with its diversification plan, claiming: “ The accommodation will bring social benefits by diversifying the existing rural business and the overall proposal represents farm diversification with wide reaching benefits to the site and local area.”

The application says the site is 300 metres from the Royal Oak pub, one of the businesses likely to benefit by their introduction.