Listed Victorian country house, which once housed a Preston special school, could get a modern extension

Developers of the £10m scheme to create a headquarters for a local utilities company want to build a two-storey extension adjoining Larches House in Ashton.

The application for Listed Building Consent is the latest chapter in a wrangle with locals over the future of the former special school at the centre of the Larches Estate.

Two years ago Sapphire Investments bought the property for an undisclosed sum with the aim of turning it into luxury apartments, with new homes in the six acres of gardens.

The idea met with local opposition and claims that mature trees in the grounds had been cut down without permission.

Last year fresh plans were revealed to turn the Grade II Listed building into the headquarters of Sapphire Utility Solutions and gained consent from the city council. That work on the main building is underway.

Now another application has gone in to the Town Hall to replace a "dilapidated" modern extension with a two-storey wing which is more in keeping with the image of the business.

"The existing buildings that are to be replaced do not reflect the prestigious setting of a main headquarters for such a company," says a planning report submitted to the council.

"Not only are they dilapidated, but their design does not project the corporate image required."

The plan is to demolish the existing extension, built during the time Larches House was used as a school for children struggling with mainstream education, and replace it with a more modern office wing.

Larches House was built in 1838 as a large residence for successful Preston banker John Lawe. He died within three years of the house being completed and it was put up for sale.

It had a succession of owners through to 1954 when it was sold after it became surrounded by the Larches council estate.

It became a school, which eventually closed in 2017 and moved to Moor Park. At that time the building was described as dilapidated and in need of a major renovation.

A heritage report to the council says the building has being of "special architectural interest."

But it criticises the "unfortunate municipal style add-ons " which were built during its time as a school.

The planning report points a finger at previous owners Lancashire County Council saying there had been "a lack of investment from the previous school occupier."

"This new extension is needed to accommodate the intended corporate head office of a large local firm, to bring it up to the prestigious level that is required of such a use.

"The existing buildings to be removed cannot be converted to provide extra office accommodation, due mainly to their unsuitable form and layout.

"It is necessary therefore that they are removed and replaced with a new, more appropriate building that provides the quality and setting that will enhance the overall building and make it fit for the purpose of a leading headquarter building."