Green light given to convert former campus near Yorkshire Sculpture Park into hotel

The plans will see a conversion of the former ‘Grasshopper’ building on the Bretton Hall estate site which has been subject to major plans in recent years.

The vacant building was last occupied by Leeds University in 2007 and was previously earmarked for demolition.

All of the other similar buildings on the site have since been bulldozed.

Although Bretton Hall Mansion is protected by a Grade-II listed status, the three-storey building to the east was built in the 1960s and 70s.

It was previously used as accommodation for students.

The application submitted by Bretton Investment Partnership Ltd suggests the building will have 12 rooms, all with en-suite facilities.

The application suggests the venture would require just two part-time staff .

Before the decision was taken to rubber stamp the latest plans, Wakefield Council’s conservation officer said: “Whilst from a heritage perspective it is to some extent a shame that the Grasshopper building will now be retained, as the initial concept of opening up the vista and entranceway to the mansion would have created a more impressive sense of arrival akin to its intended design.

“Notwithstanding this, the retention of the Grasshopper building is in itself insufficient to warrant refusal of the application.”

In recent years plans to convert Bretton Hall into a high-end 120-bed hotel, with conference and exhibition facilities, have been put forward.

The existing hall dates back to the 1720s, but a hall previously stood on the site where King Henry VIII once stayed.