Thatch crop failure forces planning rethink

English Heritage could relax its guidelines over the use of traditional building materials, amid a disastrous harvest of long-stemmed wheat straw needed for thatching.

The National Society of Master Thatchers (NSMT) said that the shortage of materials is now critical with most supplies used up. Prices have doubled from £600 per tonne to £1,500.

Long stemmed wheat straw is the preferred material for thatching in the UK, outside of East Anglia where water reed is used.

Most planning authorities around the country insist on the use of long stemmed wheat straw for repairs or reroofing, and are backed by English Heritage.

But the shortage is now so critical that English Heritage is now urging planners to allow the use of a wheat rye hybrid called triticale or thatch imported from eastern Europe.