Sarah Beeny’s lavish property in Somerset is set to end in disaster for the presenter after the council rejected her planning permission appeal
Sarah Beeny has been told she must pull down a large extension at her home that has been dubbed a “mini Downton Abbey” – and will get an update in the next few weeks. The presenter’s £3million property update was built without permission and the council ruled earlier this year that it must be demolished.
Sarah, 53, has been fighting for her property to stay for six years after local residents raised concerns. She had initially bought the Somerset property in 2018.
She then agreed to knock down the original 1970s farmhouse and build a seven-bedroom mansion in its place. Her building extension was carried out without permission.
Instead, she applied retrospectively. Unfortunately for the Britain’s Best Home presenter, the Council refused her application.
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She also lost her appeal in March. It came after her design team produced a 125-page document in a bid argue their case. But following their failure to overturn the decision, Sarah has now been informed she must demolish the property.
Both Sarah and her husband Graham have been informed they will meet Somerset Council at the site, with a visit set to take place very soon.
A spokesperson told The Sun: “A site visit is due later this month or early October. The Council will be attendance with the appropriate specialists and next steps will be determined after that visit has taken place.”
The decision comes after a statement earlier in the year revealed the council were “reviewing the case in respect of further action”. It added that the enforcement relates to a breach of planning conditions that required the original farmhouse to be demolished.
For Sarah, who announced in 2022 that she was facing breast cancer, making the estate feel like a true family home took on extra significance due to her sons – Billy, 20, Charlie, 18, Laurie, 16, and Rafferty, 15.
Having lost her own mother, Ann, to breast cancer when she was just 39 and Sarah a mere 10 years old, this mum of four confesses to being incredibly sentimental when it comes to the pieces she lives with.
She previously said: “Home is really important for me. But it’s not about how it looks, it’s about how it makes people feel.
“My mum died when I was quite young and I’ve been sentimental since then. I’ve released myself from some of it now and I’ve realised that my kids aren’t sentimental at all.
“We had a long chat around the fire the other day. They said, ‘Mum, we’re not sentimental because you’re here. You’re sentimental because you hung on to all the things that reminded you of your mum, but you’re our mum and you’re sitting right here.’ And I realised it was so true. Maybe I should let some stuff go.”
