CONTROVERSIAL plans for the major conversion of a rural hotel, a protected building with historic status, will be considered by Swindon councillors next week.

And if members of the planning committee follow their officers' advice, they will approve the application for a four-storey extension to the Chiseldon House Hotel, plus a new pavilion-style restaurant.

Sixteen new bedrooms will be included in the four-storey building, which will have one level completely below ground. Some of the bedrooms will be in the roof, reducing the impact of the structure to that of a two-storey building.

Two function rooms and a bar below ground will be designed around a sunken courtyard.

Objections have come from village residents, protection groups and the parish council.

The Georgian Group has protested on the grounds that "the proposed extension would be highly damaging to the listed building terms of its scale and situation".

The statement continued: "The proposed addition is significantly larger than the historic building and the roofline is higher than the original."

Chiseldon parish council's objection to Swindon's planners said: "On the whole, we feel that it is not possible to substantially extend the property without leading to a reduction in the aesthetic value of the original listed buildings and its setting.

"There are already parking problems at the hotel when functions are held there. The proposals to extend the car parking would be inadequate to accommodate the extra guests."

The parish council also challenges "the assertion that the hotel can only be viable with around 40 bedrooms".

Jemima Milton, who represents Wroughton and Chiseldon on Swindon Council, said: "The village is split down the middle on this issue.

"The main objection concerns parking and the worry that there'll be an overflow on to the road. Noise is also a consideration for those people who live close to the hotel.

"But businesses must be allowed to grow and thrive, so it's one of those dilemmas over which it's impossible to satisfy everybody."

The hotel is a three-storey, stone Listed II building. Its chief characteristic is the original villa and idyllic landscape. It became a hotel in the early 1990s, when a three-storey extension was added to the rear.

The owners, John and Carol Hawken, were unavailable for comment.