A request for a polytunnel and to use a shipping container as a tool and vegetable store at Amber House at Netherbury has been refused by Dorset Council.

The parish council had questioned whether the buildings were appropriate in an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.

The view was shared by a council officer who reported: “The proposed polytunnel and shipping container, which would be clearly visible from public vantage points, by reason of their design and materials, would represent a unattractive, alien, form of development which would cause serious harm to the distinctive character and appearance of the Dorset Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.”

One public comment in favour of the scheme welcome the idea of producing food, locally.