Plan to revamp Herefordshire's Fencote railway station

Fencote Station today (©Anthony Higham)
Fencote Station today (©Anthony Higham)
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A historic but disused Herefordshire railway station in an out-of-the-way spot could host holiday lets in railway carriages and a tearoom in the former waiting room.

A planning application (number 251181) put forward by business partners Anthony Higham and Benjamin Perry seeks full permission for the plan at Fencote station, Hatfield northwest of Bromyard.

The station previously stood on the Leominster-Bromyard stretch of the Worcester, Bromyard and Leominster Railway, which was discontinued in 1952 and the track taken up shortly after.

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Two of the carriages are already in place at the station, with a third “in the process of being sourced and relocated” , their application explains.


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Five bedrooms are planned, accommodating up to ten people at a time, while the tearoom “would accommodate a maximum of 12 pre-booked visitors on an occasional basis”, it adds.

Fencote Station in its heydayFencote Station in its heyday The applicants also plan to live at the station, and have recently had a separate planning application approved to rejig the station buildings to this end.

“We are bringing the station into modern times with new plumbing, wiring, heating and insulation, while preserving its character,” Mr Higham said.

“We see ourselves as its custodians. But it will need a lot of work – this is a long-term project.”

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A quarter-mile section of rail through neighbouring land had been reinstated by a previous owner, but this is currently inaccessible, he added.

Mr Higham has previously won an industry award for a self-built oak-frame home in Cheshire, though his working background is in media and television. Mr Perry meanwhile has had a career in the rail industry.

Comments on their application can be made until June 19.

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