A 156-metre stretch of fence in Kenilworth is set to remain in place after a planning battle with Warwick District Council.

'Premier Garden Centre' was refused retrospective planning permission for the boundary in 2023, having installed the fence without permission the year before.

The company then submitted a planning appeal after being told to take down the fence.

Last year, a planning inspector quashed the appeal and said the fence could remain in place - providing it was painted in an unobtrusive colour.

"The galvanised finish to the fence posts and the tape tied to them draw the eye and these items appear incongruous in this setting," the inspector said. 

"Yet the imposition of a planning condition regarding the painting/powder coating of the posts or their replacement would ensure that the posts are finished in a colour to match the panels. 

"Moreover, the plastic tape would need to be removed to enable the posts to be painted or it would be removed with the posts. 

"Furthermore, additional landscaping within the site in the area adjoining the fence would ensure that it would assimilate well into the verdant setting of the site and the surrounding area."

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When the retrospective application was refused, council planners said it was "incongruous" and "harmful" to the local area.

The plans also included a further 86 metres of metal fencing, all of which is 1.8 metres high.

The scheme said the fence was for security reasons to surround a patch of land which could be turned into a garden centre and nursery.

The patch of wooded land - referred to as Kenilworth Arboretum - is opposite Kenilworth Golf Club and next to the new housing estates being built in the area.