Member News
Proprietor of‘ Bird Place,’ disapproves of council
IN July, the proprietor of a historic property has disapproved of local council, following on from the‘ Roof,’ giving way.
Adam Fawsitt purchased‘ Bird Place,’ in the beginning of 2025, for a total of £ 3.5 million.
The property is‘ Grade II listed,’ consisting of 10 dormitories, and was previously owned by the organizers of Upper Thames Rowing Club, Peter Sutherland and Diane Sutherland.
Mr Fawsitt demanded for some roofing works, following on from discovering that the roof had weakened.
However, Wokingham Borough Council rejected this, stating that the‘ Urgent need,’ for the property to be attended to was not‘ Satisfactorily established.’
From then on, the property has deteriorated, with the interior of the home severely harmed. Mr Fawsitt put some signboards into place, expressing his discontent with the local authority.
Mr Fawsitt stated the following:“ The signs were about the council not cooperating on planning.”“ We put in an emergency application shorty after the purchase to repair the roof and they refused it on the basis that it said it was not an emergency.”
“ The ceilings have now come down, which I would say is the definition of an emergency.”
“ We then put in another application to develop the main house, including fixing the roof, but this was also denied.”
“ The council didn’ t like various elements like us digging out the basement or forming an outdoor kitchen.”“ But they could have partially allowed it – allowing for the roof to be fixed.”
It does appear the water ingress is only impacting certain areas of the roof and seemingly temporary measures to prevent water getting in should be the first call here.”
“ I made it very clear that I wasn’ t very happy, and they said that the best way to fix this was to submit pre applications again, get into a dialogue with them and find out what the issues actually are.”
But despite this, Wokingham Borough Council argued the following:“ I am of the opinion that the level of detail
Slating slipping from dormers
and justification as to the urgent need to undertake the works has not been satisfactorily established for the works to be done.”
“ Furthermore, I am of the opinion without further evidence and justification that the works intended to the roof are limited to minimum measures immediately necessary.”
“ It does appear the water ingress is only impacting certain areas of the roof and seemingly temporary measures to prevent water getting in should be the first call here.”
“ The council did not prevent repairs to the roof at Bird Place.”“ The issue was whether the proposed works could be carried out as emergency repairs without listed building consent.”
“ We would welcome a dedicated application for the roof repairs so it can be considered through the appropriate planning process.”
24 Issue 26 | 2026