A WELL-KNOWN grade II listed building is at the centre of a row over plans to demolish its late 18th Century timber screens.

Both the Ancient Monuments Society and English Heritage have objected to the plans to replace the timber at Sunnyfield House in Guisborough with metal fencing.

Planners agree that permission should be refused, but applicant Guisborough Town Council, which maintains the building, argues the screens have become a magnet for vandals and should be torn down.

The town council has won some support from Redcar and Cleveland Borough Council's planning committee, which eventually agreed to defer the decision.

Keith Pudney, both a town and borough councillor, addressed the committee. He said: "I'm extremely in favour of conservation but we have to accept that this is extremely easy for the local yobs to damage. Modern metal fencing can look just as good and would protect the building itself better."

But a report to the committee recommended the application be refused. It said: "This is one of the better- preserved historic buildings in Guisborough Conservation area. It is quite rare for decorative timber features such as these to have survived from the late 1700s and is unique in this part of the country. They are therefore very special."

Some councillors suggested removing nearby public seating to deter local teenagers, who are suspected of causing the vandalism, from congregating in the area.