A huge new £14 million opera practice centre is set to be built at the home of the Getty family after Buckinghamshire Council said yes to the plans.

Garsington Opera, which celebrated its 30th anniversary last year, has been based on the Wormsley Estate just outside Stokenchurch since 2011.

Now, they have managed to secure permission from the council to build a huge new practice centre on the estate, with work set to start in 2021.

The £14 million cost of the project must now be met through fundraising.

Local Architects Nichols Brown Webber lead the design team of consultants which included planners Lichfields.

Architect Andy Nichols said: “We knew from our previous work that a building of this size would require a sensitive design, not least due to its location on a stunning site next to ancient woodland.

"The new centre will extend to nearly 4,000 sq m and will be constructed of brick and flint walls with a plain tiled roof, an oak structure and traditional weatherboarding.

"The larger spaces will be covered by a green roof with chalk loving plants similar to the surrounding fields.

"The proposal involves replacing an unattractive agricultural building and silos with a high-quality, four storey practice centre building.

"The project includes the refurbishment of existing cottages, landscaping, and ecological enhancements.

"The site constraints required a thorough analysis of the client’s brief and careful design to incorporate the key elements required by the opera company."

Nicola Creed, executive director for Garsington Opera, added: “We are delighted to have secured planning permission. The practice facilities will create an integrated venue that creates a host of operational benefits which will enable us to create productions of outstanding artistic quality.

"This is really important given the loss of rehearsal space elsewhere.

“We intend to use the facility for opera rehearsals for four months each year, and the remainder of the year the practice centre will be available for the local community and for commercial hire.

"It will be the home for Garsington Opera’s dynamic outreach programme - working with schools, local children and adults, hospital patients and many others – and for local performing arts clubs.

"Our next challenge is the fundraising, but we aim to be open in 2023.”

The 2,700-acre Wormsley Estate, in Stokenchurch, Buckinghamshire, was bought by the late Sir Paul Getty - world renowned cricket lover and philanthropist - in 1985.