THE National Trust made a rare intervention into the planning process to try and stop a “home office” from being built in a Riddlesden garden.

The charity, which owns and runs East Riddlesden Hall among scores of other heritage buildings across the country, had objected to a seemingly mundane planning application to build an extension to 188 Bradford Road, as well as creating an office building in the garden of the property.

The single storey office would be at the boundary of the Trust’s land, and the charity said it would have a negative impact on the 17th Century property.

The hall is one of the area’s most popular tourist attractions, and is also a sought after wedding venue.

The National Trust was not the only objector - the application had also attracted objections from members of Airedale Cricket Club and Keighley Town Council.

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And numerous residents had raised issues such as encroachment onto their land and poor workmanship.

The site has a complicated planning history, with previous extension plans having been refused.

The application came before Bradford Council’s Shipley and Keighley Area Planning Panel yesterday, where members were told that work on the site had been halted after it begun without planning permission.

Planning officer Martyn Burke said: “It is unusual to get a planning objection from the National Trust, especially to something like a house extension.”

He said there was a distance of around 350 metres from the proposed single storey garden building and the historic hall.

He also showed members a photo of the site taken from the lower field at East Riddlesden Hall to show the distance between the properties. He added: “The impact will be negligible. We don’t think this outbuilding will have any significant effect.”

He said it would also be 100 metres from the cricket club.

Martin Walker from Keighley Town Council spoke out against the scheme, saying: “The green space you can see on that photo is the Hall’s riverside walk, National Trust land that I walk my dog on. This building at the end of the garden will be clearly visible. Keighley Town Council is strongly opposed to this.”

The application was to change plans for a single storey side extension to a two storey extension, create dormer windows in the roof space and build the home office at the end of the property’s long garden.

East Riddlesden Hall is a Grade 1 listed building dating back to the 17th Century. As well as the old hall there are extensive gardens on the site a shop and tea room and a old barn that is used for functions and weddings.

When it came to decide on the application Councillors were split - Gerry Barker (Cons, Wharfedale) said the scheme should be refused to be consistent with the refusal made in 2015.

But other members supported the application, arguing the plans were modest.

The scheme was narrowly approved - with four members of the committee voting in favour of it and three against.