Three-year-old girl in planning battle over Wendy House

It is made from wood, stands 7ft tall and entertains a little girl from the Shropshire border – but because of officials’ red tape it still needed planning permission. The bijou wendy house measuring 6ft by 8ft was a birthday present for three-year-old Abigail Gent, who lives near Whitchurch.

But her parents, Richard and Olivia Gent, of Bronington, were left scratching their heads after council officials ordered them to get planning permission for the structure, even though neighbours raised no objections. Wrexham County Borough Council said permission was required to ensure no additional development was carried out.



The couple said they initially built the wendy house in a paddock, which is part of their property, when they moved in about a year ago. They said it stood there unchallenged for three months, then officials visiting another property nearby spotted the offending structure and sent the Gents a letter.

It told them to either move the wendy house from the paddock to their garden or apply for planning permission to keep it in the paddock, which they were advised would cost £169 and probably be refused as the paddock is classed as agricultural land, the couple said. Instead the Gents said they dismantled the wendy house and moved it to the garden, but still had to apply for planning permission and spend hours dealing with bureaucracy.