The new owner of a property in Cinderford, Gloucestershire, has been granted permission for the house to become a holiday let – despite ten years of legal wrangling over the building’s extension that resulted in a prison sentence for its original owner.
Millionnaire accountant, Graham Wildin, built the extension to rear of the property at 24 Meendhurst Road in 2014. The 10,000 sq ft, flat roofed building includes a bowling alley, squash court and casino. A planning row ensued over the building, dubbed a “man cave”, during which the Forest of Dean District Council issued multiple requests for the its removal.
An enforcement notice was issued in 2017, which Mr Wildin did not act upon. As a result, he served three weeks of a six week prison sentence and was fined £30,000 costs, as well as being told to tear the building down. The council said the leisure complex breached planning regulations due to its large size and overbearing nature.
However, Mr Wildin has now allegedly sold the leisure complex to a Mexican businessman for just £1, whom the council has been unable to locate.
In another twist, in November 2023 a new retrospective planning application (P1524/23/FUL) was submitted to the council by “Paradise Trustees” for a change of use of the original house, number 24, now referred to as “Paradise”. The six bedroomed property is listed on several holiday letting sites, offering self-catering accommodation for up to twelve people. It is not known who is behind the company.
The council has temporarily granted permission for the change of use until 1st January 2026, despite strong objection from fifteen local residents, who fear the property will be used as a “party house”, that will attract noisy occupants and causing parking issues. They also contest the ownership of the nominated parking spaces and are concerned that any outdoor social activity would likely happen at the front of the property, which would cause a nuisance, due to the overbearing leisure centre at the rear which has left only a narrow area containing a hot tub behind the house.
The temporary nature of the permission gives the council the opportunity to assess the impact of noise and highway issues.
And the offending leisure complex? That still exists and is now referred to as 24b Meendhurst Road. It is not referred to in the letting details for number 24. In the meantime, Mr Wildin and members of his family have reportedly purchased several adjacent properties which effectively form a “fortress” – thus physically preventing the council from demolishing the leisure complex.