New planning application emerges for Derbyshire building sold off by National Trust

Stainsby School, on the Hardwick estate, near Chesterfield, was auctioned off by charity bosses last November.

No details were revealed about the sale but a planning application has now been submitted to Bolsover District Council.

New owners wish to remove some trees from the site and cut back others.

Documents say: “The application is for crown reduction, pruning works and removal of dead wood to various shrubs and trees, the removal of one Ash tree and one Poplar stump.”

Planning officers have given the proposals the green light.

Their decision adds: “It is felt that the works proposed are acceptable and will not have a significant effect on the character and appearance of the conservation area.”

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Councillors and residents had pleaded last year for the old school to remain in use for nearby villages as a community centre in this rural part of north Derbyshire beneath the turrets of Hardwick Hall.

Coun Tony Trafford, chair of the area’s arts festival and a member of Ault Hucknall Parish Council, said a consortium made up of the council, festival and local businesses made attempt to buy it but had been rebuffed by the National Trust.

A trust spokesperson said after the auction: “We can confirm the public auction of the former Stainsby School has come to a close, and we are unable to disclose further details at this time.

"The proceeds from the sale will enable us to continue to protect and preserve the Elizabethan Hardwick Hall, gardens and grounds for generations to come.”