Investigation into raffled £6m mansion completed

The owners of a £6m mansion offered as a raffle prize have only a few days left to respond to a council's recommendations after its investigation found the property breached planning rules.

North Norfolk District Council said it had given two weeks for the owners of Larkfields in Blakeney "to confirm their intentions", with the deadline being 15 March.

The authority said the home, within an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, had not been built to approved plans.

Omaze, which is running the raffle, said the winner of the three-bedroom house would not face any potential costs related to planning issues.

Entries for the prize draw are now closed and the winner is expected to be announced live on BBC One on Red Nose Day on 21 March.

The council began investigating the property after an anonymous member of the public raised concerns earlier this month, saying it had not been built to the approved designs.

A spokeswoman for the council confirmed it had completed its investigation.

She said: "We have concluded that the development has not been completed in accordance with the approved plans and that additional works have been undertaken where planning permission should first have been obtained.

"We have made recommendations to the site owners as to the way forward we would suggest they follow from here. We have asked them to confirm their intentions to us by 25 March 2025."

The council has not stated the nature of the alleged breach.

Omaze published photographs and floor plans of the home in its marketing material, which appear to be different to the designs approved by the council in 2020, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

There are additional outbuildings, a tennis court and a swimming pool, which do not appear to have been subject to any planning application.

A condition was placed on the property as part of its planning consent that removed permitted development rights, meaning any additional construction of features such as swimming pools and tennis courts would need permission to be built.

Blakeney is within an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, which means there are strict controls on development in the area.

A spokesman for Omaze said: "Omaze guarantees that no house-winner would ever have to incur any costs whatsoever to remedy an alleged historical planning breach."

He said the company guaranteed all house prizes were "transferred to winners with good and marketable title".

Comic Relief said it had been "strongly assured" proper due diligence had been undertaken and the winner of the house would incur no costs related to an investigation, should they arise.

"The aim of the partnership is to raise vital funds to tackle poverty," it added.

Larkfields was sold for £6m in July, according to property website Zoopla.

The BBC has attempted to contact Larkfields' former owner for comment.

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