Permission Impossible: Britain's Planners

In this episode of Permission Impossible: Britain's Planners, one of Britain's biggest house builders is proposing to build 1,500 homes near Ellesmere Port in Cheshire. While many local objectors are concerned about losing the green fields, one couple stand not just to lose their business but the home they've lived in for 22 years. In Denbigh, North Wales head of planning, Graham Boase is on a mission to save a Grade II listed building. Denbigh Hospital was built in 1848 to care for mentally ill patients. Now the building is in the hands of private developers who have let it fall into disrepair. The planners want to issue a compulsory purchase order forcing the owners to sell them the building, but they need the full backing of the planning committee. Will permission be granted to save this historic building? In the sleepy hamlet of Butterow in the Cotswolds, a landowner has applied for planning permission for a builders' yard at the end of a residential lane. For local residents and objectors, the prospect of having their quiet country idyll interrupted by heavy goods vehicles hasn't gone down well. And in Frodsham, Cheshire, a property developer has plans to build two new and contemporary design homes. But will the objectors stop the scheme from going ahead?

In this episode, developers hoping to get the go-ahead to build 184 new homes near Darnhall in Cheshire have a fight on their hands. Nearly 600 local residents will stop at nothing to derail the scheme and save one of the last remaining greenfield sites within their town boundary. Plus the story of a couple who took down their 18th-century manor house in Wiltshire brick by brick, packed it and transported to the Cotswold village of Uley in Gloucestershire - only to have the very view they moved their whole house to enjoy ruined by a treehouse. In Broxbourne, Hertfordshire, the pressure is on for the architect and planning consultant. He has to get planning approval to extend a Turkish restaurant in time for the busy Christmas period, but can he pull it off?

In this episode of Permission Impossible: Britain's Planners, father-and-son property developers have risked over £100,000 to secure planning permission to build a block of eight flats, but local residents are fighting back to stop the scheme going ahead. A Gloucestershire couple objecting to a £1,000,000 property being built next door are hoping their outdoor pursuits will put off potential buyers. Naturists Rod and Terry Clifford are opposed to the new build on the grounds that it's too big. In Torfaen, South Wales, a retired couple take on one of Wales's biggest housing associations over the erection of railings. Jan and Pete Newsome hate the prospect of metal railings going up in their beloved close - but who will win, David or Goliath? In Broxbourne, Hertfordshire a housing development has one neighbour spitting feathers. Alfie the parrot has lived next door to the proposed site for 14 years. The scheme threatens to overshadow the room he spends most of his time in. Alfie's owner is determined not to let it happen.

In this episode of Permission Impossible: Britain's Planners, a man puts up a fight to keep his illegally built house. It was built in the greenbelt without seeking planning permission. Now he has put in a retrospective planning application but will it be approved or refused? In Rhyl, north Wales, an applicant wants to build a brand new church and community centre on an industrial plot but a local businessman believes that the pastor should keep looking for his promised plot of land and is fighting the application all the way. An entrepreneur in Hertfordshire wants planning permission to allow her to look after cats and guinea pigs in her back garden. She is proposing to accommodate a maximum of nine furry animals in her luxury sheds, charging £8.50 per day, but local objectors are standing in the way of her business dream. And in Cheshire, plans to build 78 log cabins in Delemere Forest are causing uproar within the local community. One chief protester owns an industrial carpets business and he's planning to pull the rug from under this development.

In this episode, a controversial application to build a student village on the green belt of Chester divides the local population. To help sway the planners into recommending approval, the developers are proposing to construct a sports centre, designed and run by Sir Steve Redgrave. But can this Olympic athlete win them the planning permission they need? Also in Cheshire, planning manager Nial Casselden is assessing an application that's a matter of life or death. Gravedigger Alan Plumbley applied for planning permission to treble the size of his ecologically friendly burial ground, but with concerns the water supply could be affected, locals are objecting. In the village of Box, Gloucestershire, a special needs school for children with social, emotional and behavioural difficulties wants to turn three local cottages into residential care homes for its pupils. But with local residents objecting, the decision to grant or refuse permission will be down to the planning committee. And in Llantarnam, south Wales, planners have to decide whether or not to close down a car wash business that has been operating in a residential area without planning permission.

In this episode, a multimillion-pound property developer who specialises in creating lavish homes for the rich and famous is now looking to renovate a failing football club. But will his planning application win approval with the planners? A proposal to build a grand design in the historic village of Churton, Cheshire, isn't welcome news for local residents. Barry Littler lives next door to the proposed site and he's objecting to what he describes as a space ship that is not in keeping with the area. In the UK, there are thirty-three areas of outstanding natural beauty, protected land where the construction of new houses is restricted. But as the country faces an unprecedented housing shortage, such areas are being considered for development. Just outside Stroud, Gloucestershire, head planner Phil Skill is assessing an application to build 100 homes inside England's largest area of outstanding natural beauty, the Cotswolds, but with this proposal facing major opposition from locals, will he refuse or approve? And in Frodsham, Cheshire, 40-year-old ex-Navy pilot Paul Hanks wants to turn his need for speed into a money-making venture. Paul's military career was cut short after an accident, and now Paul is hoping to get the go ahead to run outdoor adventure activities, including hovercrafts and off-road buggies, but local residents don't want this kind of enterprise on their doorstep.

In this episode, a couple from Oakmere, Cheshire, have spent over £80,000 building their dream home, but when they changed their original plans they didn't reapply for planning permission. Now their home and future is at risk if planning permission is not granted. In Hoddesdon, Hertforshire, a planning application is underway to build 523 homes on 103 acres of green belt land. Not surprisingly the plans have already met with stiff opposition from local residents. And in Cheshire, forces veteran Joe O'Connor wants to build holiday lodges on land behind his home to help injured colleagues rebuild their lives. But will this former royal engineer win his planning battle?

In this episode, three national house builders targeted greenfield sites outside Winsford in Cheshire. They proposed to build nearly 500 new homes in the area but the locals did everything they could to derail the development. What was the final fate of these greenfields in Tarporley? A Cheltenham resident spent £15,000 on a planning application for a dropped curb outside her home, only for it to be refused, so what did this determined homeowner do next? And after securing planning permission to build a state of the art wedding venue in the grounds of Elmore Court. Did the lord of the manor, Anselm Guise, secure the future of the ancestral home that has been in his family for 750 years?