Chiltern Railways is hoping to halt council enforcement action having removed historic oak doors from Leamington Spa's Grade-II listed railway station.

On Tuesday (August 11), Warwick District Council's planning committee – the panel of councillors in charge of the final decision – will be advised to approve the company's application to replace "poor quality" and "unsympathetic" composite doors that were fitted as part of an earlier refurbishment with replicas of the original oak doors.

The station's Grade-II status means that changes to its appearance require listed building consent, something the council's report says that Chiltern Railways was "unaware" of when it ripped out and disposed of the original oak doors.

District conservation officer Jane Catterall's planning report adds: "Whilst the loss of the original doors is disappointing and no proposal can undo this harm, these works are considered to be an appropriate response to address this.

"This proposal will remove the inappropriate doors which have been installed as part of the unauthorised works, as well as the lining timbers to the frames and the inappropriate paint finish to the frames."

New wooden doors and frames are to be installed and finished with varnish that matches the 'art deco' effect created when Great Western Railway (GWR) redeveloped the site in 1939.

On top of that, Chiltern Railways seek permission to keep wall-mounted waste brackets that hold clear rubbish bags and a divider that allows the door of the baby changing room on platform two to open outwards. The divider's visual impact has been softened with timber cladding.

In May, the district council's conservation advisory forum felt that planning statements "should have disclosed that the requirement for this stemmed from enforcement action".

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Minutes from that meeting add: "This is important to note as it highlights to other heritage asset owners that there is a duty of custodianship to these buildings which must be adhered to.

"The original doors are lost forever, which is a tragedy, and so it is important that the replacements are faithful."

Feedback from other groups and members of the public includes concern that the proposed replicas are not up to the standard of the original and discarded doors, while it is argued that the bins, although necessary, should be placed in less intrusive locations.

Ms Catterall is recommending a condition that the council gets to approve a sample of the materials before the replica doors are installed, while she says that visual harms associated with the bins and barrier are outweighed by the benefits they bring and the public's expectation that those facilities form part of an operational railway station.