A businessman from Swindon who lodged two diffrent plans to build a house on the same plot of land in the countryside outside town came away from Euclid Street happy.

Half happy.

Martin Wilson, who runs Lawson Demolition Ltd in Shrivenham put in an application in 2015 to build a single three-bed family home on a patch of land outside Hinton Parva, at the junction on Short Drove and City Corner.

That plan - for a wooden-clad single story three-bed house arranged in a T-shape, didn't find favour with the council's planning officer, and when it came to committee she recommended refusal.

As a back-up Mr Wilson had put in another application for a different three-bed house, this time two storeys, in a 'barn-style' using stone and wooden cladding and featuring a large canopy.

That also was recommended by the planning officer for refusal.

But councillors thought differently.

Coun Fionuala Foley said: "I like the design and the land at the moment has an ugly shed and an ugly large skip on it - and has planning permission for garages, so it's a previously used site

"I like the idea of the barn-type design. I move we approve both applications."

Mr Wilson had told the committee that his idea was to build the house for his son, who works at the family firm, and his young family.

Coun Tobey Elliott said: "We often say in this committee we need more executive homes. And then when we get plans we say "but not like this one" or "not here." I think we should approve these plans."

But Coun Vera Tomlinson agreed with the officer's recommendations to refuse permission on the grounds that the design of both houses "was not ground-breaking or outstanding".

She went further calling the designs "abysmal."

The original application was approved six votes to four. The newer one was refused by five votes to four.