The Captain Tom pool house that was built by the family of the beloved former army officer and fundraiser, has now been demolished after a long planning battle.
Hannah Ingram-Moore, 53, the daughter of Captain Tom, was initially given planning permission to build the outbuilding next to Captain Tom's former home, The Old Rectory, in Bedford, before being ordered to submit a retrospective application due to not meeting the initial plans or designs.
Central Bedfordshire council then rejected the new plans and the family's appeal forcing them to tear down the pool house, which has now been completed.
What was built at the property?
The initial proposal for the site aimed to replace the tennis court in the southwest grounds with a single-story detached building.
This building was designed with an L-shaped floor plan, featuring a traditional flat roof. It was intended for various purposes, including private domestic use, interviews, and charity functions.
However, instead of proceeding with the original plans, the family of Captain Tom Moore, Ms. Ingram-Moore, and her husband, Colin, constructed a pool house on the site.
The couple had to seek retrospective planning permission for the pool house, which had a C-shaped floor plan that was 21 meters long and 15 meters wide with a 3-meter high ceiling and a traditional pitched roof.
Why were the retrospective plans rejected?
As the Captain Tom pool house was built near the main home, which was a listed building, the council ruled it would cause unacceptable harm to the Grade-II listed property.
Central Bedfordshire council rejected the retrospective plans as they stated: "The proposed outbuilding, would result in unacceptable harm by virtue of size, design and siting within the curtilage of a Listed Building and would lead to an overdevelopment of the site comprising an unsympathetic and dominating structure that fails to represent the informal open character of the site and lacks the due subservience."
The retrospective planning permission was refused and a demolition notice was issued last year for the building referred to as the "Captain Tom Building” in the Planning Officer's report.
What caused the planning battle?
Captain Tom's family initially rejected the council's assessment and appealed against the council's decision.
The Heritage Statement submitted by the family stated that although the new plans "introduced a degree of change" they believed these were mitigated "through the use of sensitively considered materials, design, and where possible by planting trees between the site and principal building".
The council rejected this appeal in October 2023 meaning the family were given until February 8 to remove the pool house and restore the land to its original state, which has now been done.
Ms Ingram Moore eventually stated last year that she regretted building the pool house in an interview with Piers Morgan where she said: “We have to accept that we made a decision, and it was probably the wrong one.”
