Local authorities must step up and allow traditional farm buildings to be sympathetically adapted for other uses or important rural heritage will be lost, according to the Country Landowners Association.

 John Mortimer, the director of CLA South West emphasised the importance of preserving historic agricultural buildings in the region: ‘The South West is the most important agricultural region in the country and because of its history of livestock production, has a disproportionately large number of smaller redundant agricultural buildings, including traditional cob and thatched buildings.

‘It is vitally important that these historic building are given modern uses and are thereby preserved for the future.’