A row over metal racking with the appearance of a ‘rollercoaster’ at the bottom of people’s gardens has escalated, as the parish council weighs in.

The 6m-high structure was erected in a timber yard in East Harling without planning permission - and fed up neighbours have said it has spoiled the view from their homes.

One of them, Jenny Mason, said the racking, installed behind her property by Crendon Timber Engineering, was “disgusting” and “a monstrosity”.

The company is now seeking retrospective permission for it from Breckland Council.

Now the local parish authority, Roudham and Larling Council, has lodged its own objection to the application, citing an “unacceptable impact on the amenity of the applicant's nearest residents”.

%image(14495294, type="article-full", alt="The metal racking is six metres high and 36.2m wide")

While parish councils do not have the power to turn the application down, it is a legal requirement for district councils to seek their views, which are then meant to help inform the final decision.

In their letter, the parish authority said: “Even when empty, the racking dominates the gardens of the residents, and it can be clearly seen from the B1111 too.

"The only mention of the impact in the planning statement is one paragraph, which dismisses it without consideration…

“Given that the whole of that end of the site is currently used for storage of materials, the applicant should exercise at least a modicum of consideration, and place this structure (which will be clearly visible as it is four metres higher that the resident's fences), towards the read of their site instead.”

The statement referred to by the parish council claims that the company had originally thought permission from the council was not needed.

%image(14495295, type="article-full", alt="Jenny Mason said the racking was "hideous" and had ruined the view from her garden")

It says the racking will give the firm “much needed additional storage capacity, which is necessary to meet current and future demands, especially with the growing housing market”.

It added the racking will allow them “to work more efficiently with less vehicle movements and a safer alternative to the current storage”.

Crendon’s East Harling branch director said he understood local residents’ concerns and that informal conversations had been had with them to see whether the racking’s appearance could be improved.

Breckland Council is due to issue a decision on whether to grant permission for the racking by September 26.

The plans can be viewed by searching for planning reference 3PL/2022/0875/F at planning.breckland.gov.uk/OcellaWeb/planningSearch.