REJECTED plans to convert a listed building into flats and build two new three-bedroom houses have gone to appeal.

A scheme to turn the Grade II listed farmhouse Clerkenleap, in Bath Road between Worcester and Kempsey, into six flats was knocked back by Malvern Hills District Council (MHDC) in May.

The proposal had also included the demolition of a garage to make way for a three-bedroom house, and the construction of a second three-bed home near the southern boundary of the property.

Planners said the two new homes would not compliment the historic nature of the existing building or the agricultural land it sits in.

“The current spacious, rural setting of the listed building would be harmed,” they said.

Officers also said the plans lacked detail about the impact of the development on the farmhouse, parts of which date back to the 15th or 16th century.

The council’s refusal to grant planning permission has now been appealed, which means a decision is now in the hands of a planning inspector.

It also means a new consultation period has started and interested parties have until September 2 to have their say via the MHDC planning portal.

In appeal documents, the developer asks the inspector to consider “the evolving context of the site and the degree to which its connection to the countryside has already been eroded by approved development”.

It says the farmhouse is already surrounded by barns converted into offices and land with planning permission for homes.

“Whilst new build development within the curtilage of the listed building has the potential to effect [sic] the immediate setting of the farmhouse, the design and layout of the scheme are such that impacts have been minimised.”

The developer argues that the listed farmhouse would remain the “tallest, largest and most dominant feature” of the site when viewed from public vantage points along the A38.