A farmer who wanted to build a home close to his animals to better care for rare breeds of horse has had his application rejected by councillors.

Robbie Manchester lives in a static caravan on his land near Dearham but applied to build a two-storey farmhouse on the site so he could be near his livestock.

Some of the heavy horses he keeps on the Blooming Heather farm, close to the village of Dearham, are classed as "at risk" and are facing extinction, including the only Clydesdale stallion in Cumbria.

He said that he needed to be on site as much as possible not only to care for the animals but to protect them, particularly after five dogs and a horse were killed in a barn fire in Distington which appears to have been started deliberately.

"Security is now a huge concern following what happened at Distington earlier this month," he said.

But planning officers argued that the house was too detached from the nearby village and that the building would have an "adverse impact" on the landscape which adjoins a public right of way.

They also said that Mr Manchester's principle source of income was through his other job working for the county council and that the house was not needed.

But councillor Peter Kendall, speaking on behalf of Mr Manchester at this week's Allerdale planning meeting, defended the need for a farmhouse on the site.

He said: "Yes, Mr Manchester works for the county council. It's not unusual for county council highways employees to have small-holdings.

"The Manchesters also run breeding programmes of horses and it is imperative that they are on this site 24/7 to look after their animals, particularly when they are foaling.

"They have lived on this site [in a caravan] for well over 12 years. Mr Manchester has teenage daughters and they are wanting to expand. There was a farmhouse on the site which was demolished through the process of open cast mining and all they are wanting to do is reinstate it. "

But planners stressed there was no "lawful residential use on the site at the moment" and that members should make their determination based on what was before them. Mr Manchester and his partner said they were happy to make an agreement that the farmhouse would be retained in perpetuity as rural accommodation.

Tory leader Tony Annison and councillor Alan Hedworth were among those who wanted to approve the development but the application was defeated by six votes to five.

Councillor Billy Miskelly, who voted against the proposal, said: "I go in the garden but I don't add that onto my working hours because it's a hobby. "Mr Manchester has chosen to live in the country and this is not a good enough excuse to build a building like this in the middle of the country."