Ceredigion County Council planners have been left ‘disappointed’ by Premier Inn refusing to use non-illuminated signs on its hotel on Aberystwyth seafront.

Premier Inn applied to Ceredigion County Council to replace its current signage with new updated ones.

The plans were approved by planners despite guidance warning that illuminated signage in conservation areas is ‘not generally acceptable’.

The Premier Inn, which moved into the former Bay Hotel in 2016, sits within Aberystwyth’s conservation area.

A Ceredigion County Council planning report says that the “proposal mostly relates to the replacement of the existing signage on a broadly like for like basis.”

“However this does retain the illuminated signage on the large Premier Inn logo signage on both the front elevation and rear extension,” an officer’s report said.

“Siting illuminated signage in conservation areas, and especially listed buildings, is not generally acceptable due to the impact on these historic assets.”

The report says that council officers asked Premier Inn to ‘remove the illuminated element of the scheme’

Responding to planning officers Premier Inn said: “It remains our position that the ‘impact’ on the significance of the heritage assets (the listed building and the conservation area) will not be increased by the replacement of the signs.

“The existing signage is internally illuminated, was approved in 2016, and has been installed lawfully.

“The scale and massing are almost identical and the proposal seeks only to upgrade the existing signage due to the degradation of the existing signs and current branding principles.”

Planning officers said that “it is the case that illuminated signage similar to that now proposed was granted consent previously, and given this fact, it is considered difficult to refuse the current application.”

“It is however extremely disappointing that the applicant is not prepared to use its conservation specification signage on this listed building in a conservation area, when they do in other historic locations.”

Aberystwyth Town Council objected to the plans over the signs “being internally illuminated, given the property’s location on the historic Edwardian promenade and in the conservation area.”

The town council also called for all sign writing other than the business name to be fully bilingual and Welsh given priority.

They also called for the building to be repainted “in a colour appropriate for that part of the promenade.”

Officers said that the painting of the building “does not form part of this application and is not relevant”, and added on Welsh translation having priority that “as this is a replacement signage scheme, and that Welsh is already clearly shown on the signage, it is not proposed in this instance to require this, however the point is noted.”

Approving the plans subject to conditions last week, planning officers concluded: “Whilst the use of illuminated signage is not considered appropriate, it is the case that consent was previously granted for this and that the current proposals relate to replacement of the current signage on a broadly like for like basis.

“Therefore it is proposed to grant advertisement consent.”