Wycombe homebuilder seeks approval for lift it installed without planning permission

A Wycombe homebuilder has sought approval from Buckinghamshire Council for a lift it installed without planning permission.

Bourne End-based Revere Homes has asked council planners to sign off the lift in a new planning application to create a two-bedroom flat in Flackwell Heath.

The new apartment is planned within the loft and roof space above the existing two-storey block of four two-bedroom flats, which Revere has already started building on the former car park at Old Kiln Road.

The developer was given planning permission for its original project in 2022 and has now built out large parts of the scheme, including much of the two pairs of three-bedroom semi-detached houses also approved at the site.

However, as the development progressed, residents noticed what they thought was a lift shaft into the roof space above the flats, as they could see the overrun of the shaft protruding out of the top of the roof.

READ MORE: Wycombe: New housing development breaches planning rules

The lift did not form part of the original development, and neighbours feared it was sign that a fifth flat on a hidden second floor was planned in the loft of the building.

By January of this year, the council had identified the insertion of the lift as one of four breaches of planning control at Old Kiln Lane, according to an email sent by a Bucks councillor and seen by the Bucks Free Press.

Residents have warned that the developer intended to create five flats all along and have claimed that the development circumvents planning rules by building first and applying for retrospective permission later.

Andrew Sutcliffe, whose home is adjacent to the apartment block, has written to the council to object to Revere’s new application for permission for a fifth flat, including the unauthorised lift.

He wrote: “The builder has blatantly disregarded the approved plans from the off and built the roof to have the extra flat from the onset.

“Although this has been pointed out many times by myself, and others along the way, the planners have somehow not managed to grasp/realise this for themselves! Begs belief really.

“It’s been made clear from the off, and how the development progressed, that they were building five flats.

“They even put signage up stating this, put window apertures in the roof, then closed them up when they knew that they were being visited – you have seen photos – and even changed the roof to get the lift up there!”

Revere’s new application for the fifth flat and the lift comes after it got retrospective permission from the council last month for the insertion of a rooflight, which was another of the breaches of planning control identified at the start of 2024.

The other two breaches were the siting of the development and that details had not been submitted or approved in relation to the bike and bin store.

📢 "Why wait for news? With Bucks Free Press get real-time updates directly on our ad-free app. Subscribe for unlimited access to our digital edition and enjoy 80% fewer ads on our website. Click here to find out more about how to get your news, your way, every day. #UnlimitedNews #AdLightExperience" 📢