'Hidden house' farmer hits back after conviction

A farmer found in contempt of court for failing to remove a "hidden house" inside a barn has said the council that took legal action against her showed "no compassion".

Derbyshire Dales District Council said Helen Lowe, of North Park Farm, Whitworth Road, Darley Dale, built the dwelling, which was "deliberately concealed to avoid detection" and did not have planning permission.

After multiple attempts to order Lowe to pull down the building, the council took her to court after she failed to comply with the demolition order. She faces sentencing on 18 August.

The 59-year-old told the BBC: "They've put a vulnerable person in a very compromised position, they've shown no compassion."

The council has said the maximum penalty is two years' imprisonment, an unlimited fine, or both.

The local authority was also awarded £10,000 in costs after Lowe was found guilty of contempt for failing to comply with the court's order following a trial at Nottingham County Court on 18 May.

Following reports of a potential breach, the council said officers carried out an investigation and served an enforcement notice on 19 February 2020.

Lowe appealed to the government's Planning Inspectorate, but this was dismissed on 23 February 2022.

The inspector ordered her to cease using the building as a dwelling, remove the unauthorised structure and demolish the "unlawful extension" to the barn.

The council said Lowe had "failed to comply within the time allowed".

Lowe was subsequently taken to court. On 9 September 2024, she was ordered to remove the unauthorised dwelling and cease living in the barn.

Despite this "she continued to occupy the building and did not carry out the required works", the council said.

On 2 July 2025, the council said it had applied for contempt of court proceedings after further non‑compliance, leading to her conviction in May.

Lowe claimed she "did not ignore" the enforcement order, adding the dwelling was "not a luxury pad".

"It's horrific what I've been through, it is a witch hunt. It's not like I live at Windsor Castle," she said.

"It was built as a temporary thing for me to be here when the sheep were lambing.

"I consulted with the council back and forth for some time on getting it down and the timescales."

Lowe added the removal had been delayed due to operations on her hands and the death of her mother.

Due to her bereavement, she said she did "not follow through with the appeal" to the Planning Inspectorate, which dismissed her initial application in 2022 as she "did not attend".

Lowe said she had been confident she would be able to keep the structure under legal advice following an amendment to the Town and Country Planning Order 2015 which came into place in May 2024.

The amendment - highlighted by Jeremy Clarkson in his Amazon Prime show Clarkson's Farm - relaxed rules on turning old agricultural structures into dwellings under Class Q Agricultural Permitted Development Rights.

But she said the council had served her with an injunction in March 2024 - two months before the planning amendment came into force.

"The council knew from 2022 that the rules on Class Q were changing and coming into play," she said.

She said the building as it stood would comply under current guidance.

Lowe also said she had written to the council for "some lenience" after lambing season and her health problems. She said they refused.

In addition, she claimed the council continued to pursue enforcement action, during a stint in hospital having fallen from her horse and which led to a broken femur.

"I didn't walk for four months and had to learn to walk again," she said.

"They continued with the injunction - the 14 days you are allowed your right of reply, I was in hospital.

"They ploughed on knowing full well I could do nothing about it, and they did that because they knew the law was changing and if they didn't do the injunction then, four weeks after my accident, I would have been allowed it."

The council said the case showed the "serious consequences of ignoring planning rules and failing to get the correct permission before carrying out development".

"The planning system only works when everyone follows the same rules. It is not acceptable for a few people to disregard the process while most comply," the council added.

When asked about the claims made by Lowe, the authority said: "These complex and lengthy proceedings have diverted resources from other enforcement matters.

"Our team is rightly proud of obtaining a guilty verdict, and hopes this will send a signal to other transgressors."

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