An elderly man who wants to build a small bungalow with an attached care suite so he can care for his dying wife has been blocked by council planners.

David Marks, 78, is hoping to construct the single-storey dwelling in Smarden, Kent, for his spouse Yvonne, who suffers from dementia and Parkinson’s disease.

Mr Marks, who lives in nearby Wateringbury, wants to build the home so he could personally look after Yvonne, who has been in a care home for nearly three years.

But he fears he will never get the chance to construct it before his wife’s ‘end of life’, given Ashford Borough Council has now denied him permission three times.

The property developer already owns the land in Smarden, which is a former farm – and is now appealing the latest decision with the Planning Inspectorate.

Two years ago Mr Marks had plans for an eco-house with five bedrooms, which would have been off-grid, powered by solar panels and sheltered by bunds of earth.

The proposed Grand Designs-style home would have come with a new pond to manage and recycle water and be surrounded by orchards for food production.

But Smarden Parish Council called those proposals an unsuitable ‘overdevelopment’ of the rural area and the borough council rejected them.

David Marks had hoped to construct the single-storey dwelling in Smarden, Kent, for his wife

The property developer already owns the land for the home in Smarden, which is a former farm

This was the second time Mr Marks had put forward plans for his dream home on the plot after the first proposals were rejected earlier in 2024. 

Planners ruled that the property did not meet the criteria to be classed as an ‘exceptional’ design and believed it would ‘encroach’ on the countryside.

At the third time of asking, the parish council had no objection to his toned-down plans and it also received letters of support from neighbours with one calling it ‘madness’ not for it to be approved.

They wrote: ‘This application is in keeping with the existing development and will provide much-needed single-level living for the applicant and their disabled spouse.

‘There is a total lack of single-level dwellings being built in Kent, with VERY few new developments including bungalows.

‘With an ageing population and people living longer with health conditions that impact on their mobility it is madness not to approve applications for single level dwellings.’

Another resident added: ‘We support this application as the proposal is in keeping with the character of the area and aligns with local planning policies. The single storey bungalow would improve the site’s appearance.’

In the submitted design and access statement, Mr Marks states: ‘The intention is for his relocation from his existing home to the bungalow, when approved and constructed, to relocate and personally care for his wife from the care home in Maidstone she has occupied for over two years, resulting from her dementia, Parkinson’s disease and intense nursing requirements.’

The proposals for the single-storey property which Mr Marks is hoping to build for his wife

Plans for the home, which Mr Marks has argued would contribute to housing delivery targets

The bungalow would need to be built quickly, overriding self-building regulations, but Mr Marks believes that ‘such [regulations] can not reasonably be expected to be compatible with this application, as it is possible that ‘end of life’ may occur before a self-build finish becomes possible.’

The plans were refused in June with the planning officer saying the ‘proposal is unacceptable’, wrongly encroaching on a greenfield site, despite taking ‘into account the human rights issues’.

Mr Marks is the managing director of development company DaVinci Properties, which he launched in 1989.

The site is part of what used to be Church Farm which previously had industrial units, converted by Mr Marks during the pandemic into eight new homes.

The remaining two-and-a-half acres behind the homes is where Mr Marks is hoping to build his eco-house.

He has now lodged an appeal, stating that the proposal would contribute to housing delivery targets which the council are finding ‘challenging’ and should be ‘in favour of sustainable development’.

Mr Marks further added in his appeal statement: ‘In summary, the appeal proposal is aesthetically reasonable, with a design approach consistent with the attributes of local character and appearance, whilst bringing about the productive creation of a new home, at a time when there is a shortfall in the delivery of new homes.’

An Ashford Borough Council spokesman told the Daily Mail: ‘As this is a live application and currently going through the appeals process, we are unable to comment further.’