Farmer who demolished a 17th century Grade II listed dovecote without ... trends now
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A farmer has been told to pay £45,000 for taking a wrecking ball to a Grade II listed dovecote on his land without permission.
Phillip Gore, who owns Lower Newton farm in Shropshire, was sentenced at Kidderminster Magistrates' Court on Tuesday as he failed to obtain consent before flattening the 30-foot dovecote.
The structure was believed to be the last of an ancient moated farmstead that once existed on the site.
Chris Schofield, the cabinet member for planning and regulatory services at Shropshire Council said: 'This was one of the worst examples of deliberate damage and destruction to a listed building seen in the county in recent decades'.
The farmer was fined £30,000 and ordered to pay a contribution towards the council's cost of £15,000, plus a victim's surcharge of £190 - a total of £45,190.
The judge said the fine should be more than any potential financial gain by the defendant for the offence, and it should also act as a deterrent for other people thinking of bulldozing Britain's heritage.
The 30-foot dovecote (pictured) was believed to be the last of an ancient moated farmstead that once existed on Lower Newton Farm in Shropshire
Farmer Phillip Gore was sentenced at Kidderminster Magistrates' Court on Tuesday as he failed to obtain consent to flatten the
