Sarah Beeny wins approval to keep extended Somerset farmhouse after eight-year dispute

Sarah Beeny has won approval to keep an extended farmhouse on her Somerset estate after an eight-year planning dispute. The decision reverses an earlier demolition order and has drawn criticism from parish councillors and a neighbour, who say it weakens confidence in planning rules.

Beeny and her husband, Graham Swift, bought the estate for £3 million in 2018 and had permission to replace its 1970s farmhouse. Instead, they extended it without permission; retrospective approval was refused in September 2024, and an appeal was dismissed the following February. They later proposed building four new homes rather than the five previously approved, while retaining the farmhouse. Somerset Council approved the revised plan, citing ecological and sustainability benefits, with a legal agreement limiting development at the site.