Our 300-year-old village ‘hallmark' was ripped down with NO permission in an hour – they should be ordered to rebuild it

The Sun

10-07-2025

LOCALS are furious after their 300-year-old village's "hallmark" was allegedly ripped down without permission in under an hour.
Residents near Nursling Street said they were shocked after Wychwood, a 17th-century cottage, was torn down without warning earlier this month.
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Lawrence Harfield, 71, who has lived in Nursling for two decades, said: "We were gutted when we saw what had happened.
"We thought it was a listed building.
"It was a hallmark of the village — I have taken loads of pictures of the cottage over the years, sometimes even in the snow."
Villagers were left stunned after a JCB demolished the entire building within an hour.
Residents now hope Test Valley Borough Council will order those responsible to rebuild it as it was originally.
The council received a planning application in 2022 to build a new property on the land next to the cottage.
Despite being approved by Test Valley, no work had started on the site.
Planning portfolio holder Councillor Phil Bund revealed he was not given any prior warning of work that would lead to the demolition of the 300-year-old cottage.
He added that although the village's hallmark was not a listed building, the council would be investigating.
It comes after disgruntled locals slammed annoying coach tourists for ruining England's " most beautiful village".
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The picturesque Cotswolds destination in Bibury, Gloucestershire, draws in flocks of visitors each year.
But fuming residents have hit out at the influx of tourists, who they claim wreak havoc on the sleepy village.
The breathtaking quintessentially English village is a short distance from London - which encourages even more holidaymakers looking for a quick escape to the country.
This also means housing is being snapped up for holiday rentals and Airbnbs, which wreaks havoc on the village's younger families
The area has also been inundated with more day-trippers as influencers continue to promote the quaint town on social media.
Locals have now banded together with the council in a desperate bid to stop their village becoming overrun.
If their plans are successful, it could see tourist coaches banned from the area completely.
In the meantime, new measures will include changing parking bays so the tourist transporting vehicles can't stop in the B4425 layby - near the village centre.
There are also aims to block off access to the central hub completely but this is reliant winning a legal process that is yet to begin.
Up to 50 coaches are believed to move through the village during the peak season while as many as 20,000 people flock to the area over the course of a weekend.
The resulting tension has even apparently seen things get physical, with one resident claiming to have been "punched and kicked" amid the rows.
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