The Mount Hotel reveals plans for new extension to expand wedding parties offered

The Grade ll-listed Mount Hotel, in Tettenhall Wood, which was originally built as a large family house in around 1870, is one of the city’s most popular venues for wedding parties and large functions.

However, a small, flat-roofed section that was added to the main building’s front facade midway through the 1900s is now considered unsuitable – and the owners are seeking to replace it with a new single-storey extension.

The new works being planned will include a raised first floor balcony area and a new doorway providing access from the main hall.

Mainly used for storage and toilet purposes, the section of the building earmarked for demolition was described in a 2014 Tettenhall Historic Landscape Character Study as “a particularly prominent insensitive 20th century addition”.

The report says: “An attempt appears to have been made in its original design to reflect the Tudor revival style of the main part of the building to which it is attached.

“But this was a poor attempt, reflected only in its use of stone (possibly only reconstituted stone) in the window surrounds and the use of leaded lights for the windows.

“It fails abjectly in its overall scale, the size and orientation of its windows and its flat roof design, to compliment these features of the original house.”

A design, access and heritage statement, submitted to the council alongside the plans, states: “It is considered by the hotel operator that the additional space which will be provided by the proposed extension is essential to its continued economic viability, allowing in particular more room for larger wedding parties than can presently be accommodated.

“The extension has been purposefully designed to enhance the existing character of the original building. This will allow views of the ground floor, which are presently obscured by the existing solid brick extension.

“Its loss will not therefore detract from the historic or architectural character of the remaining original Tudor-style building.”

The plans submitted to the council say that the intention is to open up the view of the hotel’s original façade, which is hidden by the existing later brick extension at present.

“The advantage of removing what is a poorly designed later addition, and so restoring this impressive east façade to something more like its original will help ensure the continued upkeep of this important listed building,” added the application planning details.

Wolverhampton Council’s planning department will make a decision on the application at a later date.