Councillors have approved plans to site a "tourist shepherd hut" type holiday let in Biddulph Moor, despite planning officers recommending that the application be refused.

Biddulph Nub News reported recently how Staffordshire Moorlands District Council's Planning Committee was due to consider the plans at a meeting, after they were called in at the request of Cllr John Jones to assess the impact on local tourist facilities.

The plans were submitted by a Mr R Whiston and relate to Sky Cottage on Top Road.

The site already has five pitches in place for caravans and two outbuildings which are used as a holiday let and facilities for the caravans.

At the meeting, which took place yesterday (Thursday 9th September), councillors went against the officers' recommendation to approve the plans in a narrow vote.

The meeting's audio cut out at the time that the vote was being taken, however Cllr Keith Flunder, who attended the meeting and voted in favour of the plans, confirmed to Nub News that the application was approved.

He said: "It was a very close one, I think it was only won by one vote.

"Hopefully it will help the local tourism industry. Planning officers have to think about the impact on the Green Belt but it's all about the balance between that and the local economy.

"In the end we didn't think there was enough harm to the Green Belt to justify refusing it, because it's only a temporary structure. If it was permanent we probably couldn't have approved it. We've also put conditions in place to minimise the impact on the Green Belt."

The hut will include a bedroom, living and kitchen area and a shower room, and are intended for tourists who don't own a caravan or are seeking a "glamping" type experience.

A planning statement prepared on behalf of the applicant argued that the hut would benefit local tourism, and could bring in over £30,000 of tourism income to the local economy per year.

However, the district council's planning officers recommended the plans for refusal, saying that the hut would "fail to preserve the openness of the Green Belt" and feeling that it "would be harmful to the rural, open and exposed character and appearance of the surrounding area".

After approving the plans, councillors delegated the application back to planning officers so that the appropriate conditions could be drawn up to minimise the impact on the Green Belt.