A WOODEN holiday chalet which was razed to the ground by fire last August cannot be rebuilt.

Members of the Yorkshire Dales National Park Authority's planning committee went with their officers' recommendation to refuse the replacement of Town End Cottage at Belle Flats, Hawkswick.

Last month, they said they were mindful to approve the development in principle but wanted amended plans.

The single-storey building had been originally built in the early 20th century by Mr Jowett, the designer and manufacturer of the Javelin car and Bradford van.

The wooden-clad chalet was bought by the present owners, the Shaw family, in 1948.

David Shaw, who lives in Cheshire, stated at the previous meeting that the family wanted to continue using the new building as a holiday chalet for their own use.

He added that it had never been let for financial gain in all the time the family had owned it.

The application put forward at the planning committee meeting in January was to replace the building with a two-storey stone dwelling in the style of a Dales barn.

At the meeting members were sympathetic to the application, but asked for amended plans which would be more sympathetic to the surroundings.

Their concern was that the proposed development constituted new housing in open countryside, and would be harmful to the surrounding landscape in the Dales.

Planning officer Roger Beck said several alternative suggestions for the re-build had come from the applicant which included a two-storey cottage in stone, a single storey-dwelling in stone and a wooden dwelling covering the original 66 squares metres.

The stone-build alternatives were much larger in size with the smallest suggestion being 102 squares metres.

Mr Beck said the application in front of committee was again for a two-storey stone-clad dwelling in the form of a Dales barn, and comprising of three bedrooms. The upper storey would be located within the roof space.

He said no case of agricultural or forestry need had been submitted with the application and, therefore, it was regarded as new housing in open countryside and contrary to the Local Plan.

John Sayer said: "I take the view that there is a right for a building of some sort there and I would not be against a similar form of bungalow which was previously there. However, the view of the authority is that this application is significantly increased in size."

David Ireton was in agreement with the recommendations.

He told the meeting: "I don't think I have ever seen a more clear-cut case of development in open countryside than this. If this goes through, then God help us!"

Roger Harrison-Topham classed the application as a "moral dilemma", while Wilf Fenten said he would be happier to have something built there which did not offend planning policy.

Members voted to support officer recommendation for refusal of the application.

After the meeting, architect Robert Groves, of Settle's John Moore and Partners, said he was unable to say whether his client would lodge an appeal.