Empty Barns and Their Opportunities

In this episode of the Farmers Planning Podcast, we’re diving into some of our latest and most interesting projects across East Anglia.

Join Guy, Mel, and Katie as we discuss:

• The rise of viticulture and how farmers are diversifying into vines, orchards, and specialist buildings.
• A tricky permitted development case refused on landscape grounds – and how we turned it around.
• The benefits of pre-applications for commercial projects, especially in the Green Belt.
• Tips for solar projects, grants, and timing your applications right.
• A successful commercial change of use application that overcame previous appeal refusals.
• Why now is a prime time to explore Class R permitted development rights for converting unused barns into commercial use.

Packed with practical advice, planning insights, and real-world examples, this episode is essential listening for farmers, landowners, and rural businesses looking to make the most of their assets.

Chapters

• 0:00 Introduction to Farming Projects

Transcript

And here we are. It's the middle of summer and we're back for another episode of the Farmers Planning Podcast. So I've got Mel and Katie here with me today as well. And we're just going to talk through some of our recent projects and the first one we've got is litter culture. We've been working with a few viticulture enterprises. It's new form of land use that's coming more popular across East Anglia and we're working with some viticultural enterprises. So yeah, Madam Katie, we'll just run you through the type of things we've been doing.

And we have looked at. Produce buildings and specialist machinery buildings for orchards. Vines and their associated.

Works. They think the Essex weather and in fact the eastern area weather has proven to be really good at producing top-quality vines and fruit produce, which is why more mines prices are looking at this as a method to diversify away from standard traditional crop.

And then, though you had an interesting one with permitted development building, which was an agricultural building that got refused based on sighting and landscape grounds.

Correct, that is correct they.

They basically sighted landscape harm, which itself is slightly frustrating because. Agricultural building in an agricultural setting is fairly characterful in this instance. The planning officer was concerned that it was an open area. And and we hadn't given due consideration to the sighting, which wasn't in fact true, we'd. Actually. Appraise the whole site, gone through three or four different locations and worked out why we couldn't use them and finally came up with this one location. To get over this, we engage with the planning officer again and and spoke to them at length and said, you know what? We need this building. This is the only place where we thought we could put it for this reason, this reason and this reason. You know, if you've got any advice, any comments? And and she was very good and came back and said well actually I. Think you need. It to be smaller. You're going to need screening and have a look at. Have a look. At your scheme. But my point was the need questioned, which is helpful. So we've gone back in with a new same setting, actually it's slightly different scheme.

Full landscaping and hopefully we'll get a decision within the next couple of weeks.

And then there's quite an interesting commercial pre at down in South Essex that we looked at for a client. He is trying to basically look at new build commercial schemes.

Umm, again, this is a commercial building that is character of. The area in. Terms of. Who will be in it? The car wants to to maximise the land he has and to. Make it work well. It is in Greenbelt, which is why we're doing a pre app rather than an application. We advise pre apps in in locations where it could be contentious or if it's a slightly left of centre application or. Or scheme and and what we really want to know is how the Council receive an application moving forward. You know, do they think it will be suitable given the current uses around it? And is there any size or design implications or is it going to be straight mode because it's green? About, we would argue that the changes to the policy last year have. Opened up Greenbelt development, although recently I've seen some articles where people are saying actually it's opened a can of worms and green belts being completed. I don't think that's the case and I don't believe that councils will let that.

Happen either I also think with. Pre apps it's quite a useful way of not spending that much money before actually deciding whether or not. To go ahead with the scheme. Because you were successful with a new commercial building where you replaced one.

Yes. Yeah. And actually by replacing buildings you you don't have some of the surveys and costs that. You do for. A new site but and A and a replacement building is always more helpful in terms of the impact you know it's already been there and new building won't be more or less impactful if it's similar in size. But in terms of cost. Absolutely. When you're putting in a commercial builder, you need to consider ecology. You need to consider biodiversity. That game you need to consider highways, etcetera, etcetera. So all of these surveys. Lose money by doing a pre app. We're establishing a position without having to spend huge amounts on the actual final replication.

And then Katie, you've been working on solar projects quite a few recently actually. And have you got any tips that you can help the listeners with relating to?

So.

I think carefully considering the impacts that have on your neighbours, buildings and which roofs you want to cite your solar on is really important and also making these applications as early as possible. We found that lots of them to support grants that are. Coming in and. And letting you get. It in for. The easier the process.

And then the last scheme, which we think's quite good in terms of relevance at the moment that we've been working on was for a commercial change of use on some buildings that had an appeal. I refused and we've managed to go back in some years later with a scheme. Which you guys originally looked at with a. Personal limitation on the approval. And then the planners have come back effectively and removed the personal limitation and been quite open-ended with it. And we actually found them quite helpful on that application.

Yeah, the plans have been really good. They actually come with the site for various other reasons and the commercial use in this instance was quite quiet. And I think that was the key to achieving this approval as it was located quite near residential properties. But the planners were actively engaging and and realised with the issues that. Were going on. Whereas the the appeal was very much just going to be noisy and disturbance, etcetera, etcetera, the Council recognised the fact that this was entirely different to what was previously considered might happen. We obviously used a noise solid, saw the application, but ultimately we got the result that we wanted on the client is very.

In a meeting, a real opportunity at the moment is all commercial change of use on empty barns. So we've been looking today at some projects that are 1000 square metres of course are could be available. So you can change up to 1000 square metres from farm to commercial use. On your farm. And we think there's a real window of opportunity for that at. The moment with. The way councils and planners are dealing with. Tangents of the east.

Bit exactly, and it's at this point of view and and when farmers are filling up their barns quite rapidly and they look around and think where this barn is no longer suitable or fit for purpose for whatever reason and it's those bonds when you're looking at it and thinking our company grain in here or I. Can't do. This with it that building needs to work. And the best way to make it work is to change views. This community development that's available to do that, so the best thing is to take advantage of those.