A wedding venue near Burnham-On-Sea has unveiled plans to extend its facilities with a new development of holiday lodges.
Batch Country House in Lympsham has submitted a planning application to Somerset Council for the construction of a set of new lodges.
The eight new ‘tourism lodges’ would provide a mixture of self-contained 2 and 3 bedroom lodges, each measuring 12.2m x 4.0m with decked areas and amenity spaces.
“The proposed development will support the long-term viability of Batch Country House hotel, supporting the local economy and employment,” says the applicant.
Batch Country House has been operating since 1964 and hosts receptions, balls and banqueting events, plus private parties, conferences and holiday accommodation.
“The proposed holiday lodges would be used in association with the existing site’s use as an established hotel/wedding venue. The Council through its preapplication advice are in general support of the proposal, recognising that the proposal would represent an appropriate diversification of the existing business, varying the type of accommodation on site.”
“Given the siting of the lodges, the proposal would have no impact on residential amenity and is therefore consistent with the requirements of Policy D25 Protecting Residential Amenity.”
“The Policy on Tourism in the Local Plan supports proposals for tourism related initiatives including accommodation where they contribute to improving the quality and diversity of the tourism offer and enhancing the image of the area as a tourism location. This proposal is consistent with the objectives of the Policy.”
“This will help the long-term viability of the business, as the tourism/hospitality industry continues to face economic challenges.”
The application has reference number 31/23/00017 and consultation is underway by Somerset Council with comments welcome until October 30th, 2023.
