Weston-super-Mare's Old Thatched Cottage applies to get new roof

A restaurant in one of Weston-super-Mare's oldest buildings could get a new thatched roof.

The Old Thatched Cottage, in Knightstone Road, dates back to the late eighteenth century and is the town's only surviving thatched house.

The thatching would cover an extension, which has a flat roof, and is outside the cottage's Grade II listing.

A bid to install the roof said it will "represent a demonstrable improvement the character of the building".

A planning application was submitted to North Somerset Council earlier this month to install the thatching on the building's large flat roofed extension, the Local Democracy Reporting Service said.

Sitting along the sea front, it was originally created as a holiday home for musician and soldier Reverend William Leeves and has a blue plaque commemorating him.

A statement submitted with the application said: "The roof of the western extension to the building is currently a modern flat roof which is in stark contrast with the traditional pitched, thatched roof of the cottage.

"It is considered that the proposed thatched roof, which reflects original cottage, would represent a demonstrable improvement to the character of the building and its setting."

It is not yet known when a decision on the application will be made.

Follow BBC Somerset on Facebook and, X. Send your story ideas to us on email or via WhatsApp on 0800 313 4630.