A FAMILY’S hopes of building an annexe in the grounds of their home to look after a sick relative have been rejected after planning officers said it looked more like an extra home.

Medwin Culmer had applied for permission to build the annexe next to his home at Boskenwyn Downs, near Helston.

He had hoped to move into the detached one-bedroom building and let his son and family move into the main home so they could care for him.

But Cornwall Council’s west sub-area planning committee yesterday refused planning permission for the annexe.

A report from planning officers stated: “The annexe is considered to comprise a large building which is neither ancillary nor subservient to the principal dwelling; such that it is effectively a new dwelling in the open countryside.”

The planned annexe would have one bedroom, an open plan lounge/kitchen/dining room, a bathroom and a utility room.

However the plans had received support from the parish council which said it had support from “the entire community”.

Cornwall Councillor for the area Julian Rand also backed the proposals.

In a statement he said: “The annexe is required to accommodate the existing occupier of the principal dwelling, Mr Medwin Culmer, who has serious ongoing medical conditions. His son and family will live in the principal (larger) dwelling in order to be on-hand and provide support and help as necessary.”

Urging the committee to support the plans, he added: “While not a material planning consideration this is a family colution to an adult social care challenge and should be commended.”

Mr Culmer’s son, also named Medwin, addressed the committee and said: “The annexe would be used for my father who has lived in this area for more than 40 years.”

In a letter submitted with the application he stated: “My wife and I would like to live close to him, but house prices in the area are prohibitively expensive for us

to afford to buy a home nearby. If we were able to build an annex, it would allow us to help him with day to day tasks such as cooking, washing and cleaning, as well as the upkeep of the house and garden. My wife and I would ideally live in the main house and gradually tackle the much-needed major renovations as time and money allow.

“We would very much like to allow my father to remain living in the area where he has spent most of his adult life and feels quite comfortable surrounded by everything he enjoys and needs for daily living. We don’t wish to disturb his quality of life by having him move away or into a home, especially in his condition.”

He also explained that the annexe would be around half the size of the existing house and had been designed so it would not be visible from outside the grounds.

However the planning committee agreed with the officers’ recommendation to refuse permission on the grounds that the siting, forming and massing of the planned building “is tantamount to the erection of an independent dwelling”.

The committee voted 10 votes to five to refuse planning permission.