A well-known York pub has been refused plans to erect a marquee in its beer garden due to its ‘cheap’ appearance.

The Fox Inn at 168 Holgate Road sought to erect a 3m-high, 84m2 marquee for three years, from March to October.

However, City of York Council planning staff said: “The scale of the structure and cheap appearance of the material will draw attention eroding the spacious setting of the public house and contrasting poorly with the high-quality materials and design of the listed building.”

Pubs are allowed to have marquees under permitted development rights but they cannot be on site for more than 120 days a year and there are restrictions on size, which the application would breach.

The planners’ report said the application would harm the setting of the Grade II-listed pub, erected in 1878 'in a spacious garden setting' as it was large compared to the pub, at half its height. The ‘poor quality materials’ would also “detract from the high-quality design of the listed building.”

Recommending refusal, they further concluded: “The proposal will also erode the spacious setting of the public house resulting in harm to its identified heritage significance.”