Kim and Samantha Weld-Blundell want to convert the stone barn at Leagram Mill Farm, along with a small outbuilding beside it, into a four-bedroom family home with a separate annexe for guests and home working.
The barn sits just off Dinkling Green Lane, close to where Kim grew up. The wider estate has been in the Weld-Blundell family for generations, and Kim has chosen this part of it as the place he wants to build a long-term home for his own family.
The barn could become a four-bedroom house (Image: Zara Moon Architects)
Documents submitted to the council say the barn and outbuilding are in need of a new purpose, with one of them now in poor condition, and that converting them together would “safeguard the future” of the buildings while giving the family a place to live on the land they already farm.
Leagram Mill Farm covers around 100 acres in total, including 78 acres of its own agricultural holding.
The barn has had work done in recent years, but still keeps much of its character, with natural stone walls, old openings of different shapes and sizes, and a long slate roof. The ruins of a former farmhouse can still be seen nearby, and Leagram Brook runs close to the plot.
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Under the plans, the main barn would become the family home, with bedrooms upstairs and an open-plan kitchen and living space created in the attached lean-to.
The outbuilding would become a small annexe with a guest bedroom, garden room, and two offices so the couple can work from home.
The design team say the aim is to keep the rural feel of the buildings, using timber and stone to retain what makes the barn recognisable from the lane and footpaths that pass close by.
The outbuilding is proposed to become an annexe (Image: Zara Moon Architects)
They add that the project has been shaped around the landscape, the views across the fields, and the chance to bring the buildings back to life in a way that suits family living.
The couple hope the finished home will become a high-quality addition to the area and set an example for how old rural buildings can be reused.
To view the plans in full, visit the council’s planning website.