Cantilevered cabin approved in Wye Valley

A tourist cabin that will jut out from a wooded hillside in the Wye valley has been approved.

The “eco-conscious” applicants, a Mr and Mrs Moulton, put forward a design with “minimal” foundation to lessen damage to tree roots, their application said.

This will support the lightweight timber-clad cantilevered structure above ground, which will feature a living Sedum roof, insulated walls and thermally efficient glazing.

The two storeys would form a T-shape, with a the ground-floor bedroom “box” partly suspended over the woodland floor, and a living accommodation box on the first floor projecting “within the tree canopy”.

Lying within the Wye Valley area of outstanding natural beauty (AONB), and the Hoarwithy conservation area, the existing woodland would screen the cabin from its neighbours, the application said.

The design supersedes a previously approved plan for a more conventional outbuilding nearby – but the cabin would be less intrusive.

The “unique tourism facility” will form part of Tarrystone House and would not be sold as a separate property, it added.

Its design is “innovative and well-articulated”, Herefordshire Council’s planning officer judged. And despite “some harm” to the AONB, the boost to local tourism weighed in its favour, he concluded.

A condition of its approval was that should not be occupied by the same resident for more than 28 days at a time.