AN OFFER by homeowners to demolish their own luxury mansions in a bid to put an end to the "living hell" of a long-running battle with the council over plot size and location has fallen at the last hurdle.

The revised Grundy Fold Farm plans, which involved knocking down and rebuilding two properties and reducing the size of another at a cost of more than a million pounds, have been thrown out by councillors.

The compromise, which was offered after Bolton Council ordered all five luxury homes to be demolished, received the seal of approval by town hall planners last week.

But the planning committee decided that the houses were still too big and too far apart from each other.

Heaton and Lostock councillor Anne Galloway said she had sympathies with purchasers of the plots but urged councillors to protect the "integrity" and "credibility" of the planning process by voting against the latest application.

She said: "The blatant disregarding of the planning permission granted in 2014 has had a harmful impact on the appearance and character of one of the most prominent greenbelt sites in West Bolton. There has been widespread dismay from the public at seeing our planning process flouted on such an important greenbelt site."

Elan Raja told councillors about the "immense challenge" he and the other plot owners have faced since 2016 when the local authority found the houses were not being built in accordance with the planning permission that was granted two years earlier and advised the developer to stop work.

He said: "Given the plots are our homes, the unfolding of various twists and turns of all applications, it's been nothing short of a living hell. There have been big implications of all areas of our daily lives. The financial burdgen, the threat of loss, the emotional impact, they've all stacked up. And with that, we wish to bring matters to a successful conclusion."

Cllr Bob Allen described the plans as a "significant improvement" and encouraged the owners to come back with a "more acceptable" scheme.

Speaking to The Bolton News after the meeting, Mr Raja said: “We remain committed to working with the local planning authority to find a compromise in line with the officer’s report and in line with what Cllr Bob Allen had stated about coming back with a new application.”

An enforcement notice to demolish the entire development is on hold as the decision has been appealed. A three-day public inquiry to hear the appeal is scheduled for November 12.