Anthony Benney applied retrospectively for a change of use to the barn near the village of Angram to the Yorkshire Dales National Park Authority, whose planners decided a modern wooden lean-to added to the building was not in keeping with its character.

Skeugh Head Barn, on Skeugh Head Lane, appears on maps as early as the 1850s and lies within the Swaledale and Arkengarthdale Barns and Walls Conservation Area.

The conversion for private use fell foul of National Park planning regulations, which stipulate that changes of use for historic buildings must be for either local occupancy or commercial reasons, such as holiday letting. Officers viewed the development as ‘tantamount to the creation of a new dwelling in open countryside’.

They added that the lean-to and landscaping works to the access track and parking area could have a ‘significant harmful impact’ on the area.

The Benneys had added a mezzanine floor within the barn and basic facilities including a log-burning stove, sink, beds and gas camping stoves, though it is not connected to mains water or electricity supplies. The timber shed is used for storage and a toilet.

Muker Parish Council were the only body to object to the application, on grounds that the lean-to was not in keeping with other barns and outbuildings in Upper Swaledale. They described it as ‘unsightly’.

Relevant planning policies referred to also include guidance that stipulates buildings whose use is classed as ‘low intensity’ such as camping barns, should not be materially altered.

The officers’ report read: “The personal use of the barn for residential purposes along the lines proposed, albeit with basic facilities, is akin to a C3 dwelling (a second home) and is not a commercial holiday use. L2 is a conservation-led policy that seeks to find new uses for traditional field barns aimed at securing their long-term future. But in this

case, there is no employment or local occupancy benefits that would outweigh the landscape harm caused by the development. Furthermore, there are no additional

justifications for an isolated dwelling in the countryside, such as for a rural worker’s accommodation.”

Mr Benney submitted a heritage report stating that no further works to the building had been completed since the roof was restored in 2011. The hay loft, which had rotted away, was reinstated.

The proposal was refused and Mr Benney has the right to appeal.

Family who converted 19th-century Yorkshire Dales barn into a private camping barn 13 years ago are refused planning permission for it