THE future of a Dunster timber firm has been secured after planners went against the advice of highways chiefs and agreed to allow it to continue trading from its current site.

On Tuesday, members of Exmoor National Park Authority's planning committee agreed to lift a restriction which would have forced craftsman Barry Fowler to call time on his business.

Members were told Mr Fowler had run Fowler Farm Supplies and Timber Products from the Crown Estate-owned dairy at Home Farm off the A39 at Dunster for the last 12 years.

Although he had operated without planning permission for the first two years, in 2001 he was given temporary planning permission for the venture by the park authority.

It was the first of two temporary five-year permissions for the change of use of buildings at the site to allow him to continue making timber animal housing and other wooden products despite strong objections from the highways authority.

The committee was told the first permission in 2001 was given on the understanding Mr Fowler was coming up to retirement, but when that did not happen, he was given a further temporary approval in 2005.

At the time, highways chiefs maintained their opposition to the application on safety grounds, but accepted Mr Fowler was nearing retirement.

They called for the temporary permission to be made personal to Mr Fowler and asked for a number of conditions to be attached to the temporary approval.

One condition prevented any roadside signs or advertising, while another stipulated that the use of the site must cease and the buildings restored to their former condition before October 1, 2011.

Mr Fowler had applied to the authority for the latter condition to be lifted to allow the permanent operation of a timber business at Home Farm.

In a detailed statement accompanying the application, his agent, Acorn Property Consultants, argued that the business created jobs and supported local timber industries.

They said around 75 per cent of wood was sourced from local Exmoor forests and the business helped local growers by adding value to their products.

"Overall, the retention of the use will prevent the loss of jobs, contribute positively to the processing of locally grown timber, thereby, having a sustained positive impact on the strength and viability of the local economy and environment by supporting the use of sustainably managed local timber within the national park," the consultants said.

But highways chiefs had remained adamant that the firm should not be allowed to continue trading from its current premises.

In a letter to the park authority, highways bosses said there had been ten "personal injury accidents" within half a kilometre of the farm access, several of which were "overtaking related accidents".

Although the highways authority was unable to say whether any were directly linked to the timber business, bosses said they strongly believed everything possible should be done to reduce traffic movements in the area.

Mr Fowler's agents had estimated the firm generated a maximum of eight traffic movements a day, while one employee caught the bus to and from work.

The agent also maintained that the use of The Dairy for the timber business created far less traffic than other uses which did not need planning permission, such as a farm shop, would.

But highways chiefs described the access to Home Farm as a "high risk location" and said their previously stressed concerns still stood.

The committee had been advised by planning officers not to lift the condition in light of the highways objections.

In a report to the committee, planning officers said: "It is appreciated that this business is very small scale and produces high quality handmade local products and that this type of employment use is normally encouraged by the authority.

"However, in view of the highway safety objections, which are reinforced by the accident statistics, it is judged that the application should be recommended for refusal."

But members decided the condition should be lifted, effectively giving Mr Fowler full planning permission for the business, subject to a number of improvements being made to the access to the site.