West Berkshire Council has issued a formal order requiring Pippa Middleton and her husband, James Matthews, to dismantle an unauthorised car park on their Barton Court estate. The enforcement action targets approximately 400 square metres of agricultural hard standing laid across a meadow near the River Kennet. The council rejected the couple’s retrospective planning application, citing the structure’s 'visually intrusive and urbanised' impact on the North Wessex Downs’ rural character.
The dispute erupted after local residents in Kintbury detected construction work last year without being consulted. Objectors described themselves as 'shocked' by the sudden appearance of the parking area, which replaced the grazing ground of two heavy horses named Monty and Drummer. One resident argued the move was designed to hide vehicle sightlines from the couple’s main residence, stating it caused detriment to the residents and the village’s heritage. Planners also flagged a lack of mitigation measures to protect the river from potential environmental runoff.
The couple had defended the project by arguing that selling fishing rights along the River Kennet generated significant income necessary for maintaining the 145-acre property. Despite this justification, the committee sided with the neighbours, concluding the development eroded the open rural landscape. This ruling adds to a growing list of legal and community battles the Middletons have faced since moving into the Grade I-listed manor in 2022.
Tensions between the estate owners and Kintbury villagers have persisted since the family installed electric gates to restrict public access to Mill Lane, a route previously used by ramblers and dog walkers. Thirty-five residents, backed by the Ramblers Association, are currently pursuing a separate Planning Inspectorate inquiry to have the lane recognised as a public right of way. James Matthews attended the May hearing, asserting that family security and privacy must outweigh traditional public access.
The Middleton-Matthews team now faces a deadline to remove the hard standing and restore the land to its previous state. Failure to comply could result in the council undertaking the demolition at the couple’s expense. Meanwhile, the separate legal battle over Mill Lane access continues, with the next hearing expected to determine whether the historic path remains open to the public.