The owners of an historic conservatory in the grounds of a manor house near Ramsbury have been refused permission to take it down.

Paul Stibbard, of Baydon Manor at Marridge Hill, argued that the Grade II listed structure, called The Winter Garden, would cost £800,000 to repair and would only add value of £250,000 to the estate.

Mr Stibbard said he and his wife inherited The Winter Garden in 2002 when his father died and it was already in an advanced state of disrepair.

Their first application to demolish The Winter Garden was refused by Wiltshire Council’s Eastern area planning committee last October and Mr Stibbard has appealed to the Planning Inspectorate.

But he submitted a new planning application as a compromise to remove the majority of The Winter Garden and store it off site. The structure would then be marketed for sale with the intention of reconstructing it elsewhere. An extension incorporating a lean-to vinery would be unaffected by the proposal to deconstruct.

Wiltshire Council’s planning officers recommended refusal because there was no information provided on the method of deconstruction or where it would be stored. Ramsbury and Axford Parish Council supported the proposal but English Heritage, the Wiltshire Archaeological and Natural History Society, the Victorian Society and the Council for British Archaeology all objected.

At a meeting of Wiltshire Council’s eastern area planning committee last Thursday, John Baumber, Wiltshire agent of the Council for British Archaeology, said: “This proposal would be like taking the stones from Stonehenge, putting them somewhere else and saying you have preserved Stonehenge. It’s a vital component of the heritage asset at Baydon Manor.”

Councillor Jerry Kunkler said The Winter Garden would attract visitors if it was relocated and restored, and if a new site and owner could be found the plan would likely gain approval.

The committee unanimously refused Mr Stibbard’s plan.