A FINAL appeal to decide the fate of a young Glandwr couple’s controversial eco roundhouse will take place on Tuesday (May 19).

Megan Williams and Charlie Hague, both 27, have been battling for three years to save their self-built family home from demolition.

Built without planning permission ahead of the birth of their son Eli – now almost three - the turf-roofed house has divided opinion, with Pembrokeshire County Council calling for it to be pulled down.

Last year, members of the council’s planning committee voted by 9-4 to refuse retrospective planning permission for the roundhouse, despite local and international support for the project.

But an online petition set up in support of the couple topped 100,000 signatures, with people all over the world praising the couple’s home as ‘beautiful’ and ‘inspirational’.

Speaking to the Western Telegraph, Megan said she was ‘overwhelmed’ by the continuing support.

“We have been blown away by the sustained interest from all over the world,” she said.

“We feel as prepared as possible for the appeal, and we hope the inspector will recognise the work we have put into our application, and consider it on its merits.”

The couple’s hopes now rest on their application meeting One Planet Development (OPD) practice criteria, and demonstrating that they can sustain themselves and their family by working on the land.

Megan said she was confident the couple had shown they could meet OPD targets, which require either 65 per cent of all subsistence, or 30 per cent of food and 35 per cent of livelihood, to come from the land.

This will be achieved by combining sales from Charlie’s woodworking business with income generated by small-scale renewable energy on site, and a soft fruits dessert business.

At present, Megan said raspberries, blackcurrant, gooseberry, jostaberries, white and red currants, strawberries and rhubarb were already growing well, which she hopes will bode well for their appeal.

“We’ve built a sustainable home for our young family and are living lightly on the land and hope we will continue to be able to do so,” she added.

A decision on whether the couple will be granted retrospective planning permission will be made at Hermon Community Centre on Tuesday, May 19, at 10am.