The Sun, on UK Politics, 5 November 2026

3.0out of 10Minor

Neighbours LOSE 10-year planning row with millionaire developer

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Comment now Next NEIGHBOURS of a “mega mansion” have been left fuming after losing a 10-year planning battle with a millionaire developer. Thomas Worrall has been allowed to keep his seven-bedroom luxury home by Bath and North East Somerset Council despite residents claiming it’s a clear breach of planning permission. 6 The property has been described as the biggest newbuild in the city of Bath in 100 years Source: SWNS 6 Resident Tavis Hamilton lives next door to the massive house and has spent ten years battling developers Source: SWNS Advertisement It’s believed to be the largest new build in Bath in 100 years, which locals say has marred the beauty spot.

The monster-sized property on the edge of Bath has been constructed significantly higher and with a larger footprint than originally approved by the local council. Sign up for The Sun newsletter Thank you! Email address Please provide a valid email. Your info will be used in accordance with our Privacy Policy You'll now receive top stories, breaking news, and more, straight to your email. In 2021, Thomas was granted permission to build a five-bed home that blended into the hillside.

But locals have spotted that the building is facing a different direction than Thomas originally said with the property two metres taller and 130sqm bigger. Read More PLANE PANIC Bomb alerts rock at least 15 planes as flights across Europe targeted AGAIN COP ATTACK Trans yob sexually assaulted cop and tried to bite him in horror attack 6 In 2021, Thomas was granted permission to build a five-bed home that blended into the hillside Source: SWNS 6 More than 100 locals lodged formal objections against Thomas over the last 10 years Source: SWNS Two extra rooms have been added, including its own gym and cinema room which were not part of the original approved plans.

Tavis Hamilton , 48, who lives next door, is one of more than 100 locals that lodged formal objections against Thomas over the last 10 years. Advertisement Tavis said: “It is an absolute mega home – it will probably be worth more than £3million when it’s finished. “It is enormous and dwarfs all the cottages. You could fit around 24 of the other cottages into the footprint.” Most read in The Sun COPTER COCK-UP Police helicopter denies 'drawing penis the in sky' with phallic flight path SNUFFED OUT Fireworks completely BANNED in parts of UK for Bonfire Night after law change DIVE DRAMA Moment divers fight underwater as man tries to pull off instructor’s mouthpiece COLD KILL How mum of teen killer found severed head in wardrobe before chilling confession 6 The monster-sized home on the edge of the historic city has allegedly been built significantly higher and with a larger footprint than what was approved Source: SWNS 6 Owner Thomas Worrall says he’s ‘not the bad guy’ and has defended the plans Source: SWNS But following a meeting with local councillors, Thomas has had a retrospective planning application approved over fears that the building to remain derelict if they rejected it.

Advertisement Thomas has nearly completed the grand property and insists he’s “not the bad guy”, adding: “I just want to finish the job and move in with my family.” He explained that he bought the land with planning permissions but due to ground changes he had to make changes to the construction. Locals are fuming and say the situation highlights how multi-millionaires are able to exploit loopholes during the planning process. Tavis added: “It just shows how unfair the process is.

It seems if you put the wrong guttering on your house or use the incorrect glazing, the council jump on you for enforcement. “But you can build this enormous structure without the right planning permission and no enforcement is carried out until it is too late.” Advertisement Residents who attended the decision meeting with the council have accused them of authorising a “two- tier” system. Speaking at the decision meeting, neighbour Paul Raithby told councillors: “The applicant, their surveyor and your own case officer all acknowledge that what has been built is an intentional breach of planning control.

“There is zero demonstrated local need for a seven-bedroom luxury mansion to justify overturning planning laws.” Councillor Shaun Hughes said: “This isn’t a clerical error – a seven-bed luxury house with gyms and cinema room and stuff. “This was not an error where they accidentally reoriented the building and added two bedrooms in.” Advertisement Cllr Wright stressed that the build has severely impacted neighbours along the narrow single-track road, with windows now positioned right beside adjacent properties.

RECOMMENDED STORIES Meanwhile, Cllr Tim Warren said: “I don’t like it but I think we have no option but to go along with it.” Following the verdict, Paul said: “It just continually goes to prove that the planners do not really have the teeth to fight a developer with deep pockets, and that is what it seems to come down to.” Comment now

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What we found (1)

The Sun reports that Bath and North East Somerset Council approved a retrospective application letting Thomas Worrall keep a seven-bedroom house built larger than permitted, after more than 100 local objections. The body attributes the residents' and councillors' criticism to named people and gives the owner his reply. The one problem is minor: the headline puts 'monster' in quotation marks as if someone in the story said it, when the word is The Sun's own.

  1. Headline goes beyond the article

    Minor

    “after he built ‘monster’”

    Why this matters
    The Sun puts the word 'monster' in quotation marks in the headline, the form used for a quoted speaker.
    The impression it gives
    A reader takes 'monster' to be a quotation from a neighbour or a councillor describing the house.
    The context
    No one quoted in the article calls the house a monster. The neighbour Tavis Hamilton calls it 'an absolute mega home' and says it 'dwarfs all the cottages'. 'Monster-sized' appears only in The Sun's own narration and photo captions, so the quotation marks pass the outlet's own word off as someone else's.

    How we know

    • Elsewhere in the article“The monster-sized property on the edge of Bath”
    • Elsewhere in the article“It is an absolute mega home”

    Show it in the article

What it gets right

  • “The applicant, their surveyor and your own case officer all acknowledge that what has been built is an intentional breach of planning control.”

    The Sun pins the breach to a named speaker at the decision meeting, and that speaker says even the applicant accepts it. The reader can see the basis for the claim rather than taking it on the outlet's word.

  • “he bought the land with planning permissions but due to ground changes he had to make changes to the construction”

    The Sun reports the owner's own explanation for the changes, so the man at the centre of the row is heard and not only described by his opponents.

  • “I don’t like it but I think we have no option but to go along with it.”

    The Sun quotes a councillor's reason for approving the scheme, so the reader sees why the council decided as it did and not only how the neighbours reacted.

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