A Pilates influencer has emerged victorious in a dispute with her neighbors over the establishment of a £30,000 garden studio that initially lacked planning approval.

Megan Smith, 24, has now received authorization to continue operating Luco Wellness from her grandparents’ backyard in Norfolk, despite receiving numerous noise complaints from elderly neighbors.

Prior to opening her business, Smith honed her skills at wellness centers in Dubai for three years. She then sold all her possessions, including her car, to invest in Pilates equipment.

Upon returning to the UK, she relocated to her grandparents’ home, valued at £825,000, and shared the expenses of constructing the £30,000 studio.

Smith, who had already garnered over 23,000 followers during her time in Dubai, launched her wellness venture in King’s Lynn on November 3.

She sought retrospective planning permission for the studio, which was transformed from a swimming pool hut into a wellness center, featuring amenities such as ice baths, a sauna, and a cafe.

The application was met with fierce opposition by locals, who raised concerns about noise levels and customer parking.

But the council also received 20 letters of support and has now ruled in her favour, with Cllr Richard Coates saying he could not hear any noise ‘at all’ when he visited.

They also praised her for bringing ‘something different to West Norfolk’, and described Luco Wellness as an ‘excellent business’.

Megan Smith, 24, has been granted planning permission for her Pilates studio despite objections from her neighbours

Megan’s grandparents’ £825,000 house in King’s Lynn where Megan has set up her Pilates studio 

The Pilates studio (pictured) became the centre of a planning battle after neighbours complained about the levels of noise

It was granted with conditions that classes can only take place on Mondays and Thursdays from 8am to 12pm and 5pm to 7pm, Tuesdays and Saturdays from 9am to 12pm and Sundays or bank holidays from 10am to 1pm.

The council said no more than five people were to be allowed in a class at any one time and there must be a 30-minute interval between each session.

The decision will be reviewed again in 2027, to allow councillors to review whether the conditions of the planning application have been met. 

Ms Smiths’ business became a quick success after opening, welcoming 46 people in the space of one week.

The gym currently hosts up to six classes a day, between 6am and 7pm on weekdays and 9am to 12 noon on weekends.

Prices range from £23 for a single class to £40 per person for a private session. She also hosts hen parties and corporate events.

The business, which lists Megan and grandfather Bernard as directors, also boasts an on-site café, Luco Nourish, which serves a range of organic treats from Matcha lattes to Acai bowls ‘that support both the body and mind’.

However despite the early success, locals became alarmed after searching Ms Smith’s social media page and finding adverts for hen parties.

They argued the business was much grander than the small-scale studio she proposed to the council.

In response to the surveillance of her Instagram account, Ms Smith previously told The Mail: ‘I have had these people looking at my social media and stalking me on there. It’s bizarre. They’re setting up accounts so they can stalk me.’ 

‘I’ve done hen parties and had corporate days for businesses but I don’t know what idea they [neighbours] have. It’s not parties.

Megan Smith spent three years training to teach Pilates in wellness centres in Dubai

The business also boasts an on-site cafe, named Luco Nourish, which serves a range of organic treats from Matcha lattes to Acai bowls ‘that support both the body and mind’

‘It’s yoga and Pilates. All it is is a private class. I’m not holding hen parties in the studio and they just have a coffee or a Matcha at the end.’

Responding to suggestions she was underselling the scale of her business to the council, she blamed the older generations’ lack of social media literacy and claimed her Pilates reformer classes host only five people at a time.

‘They just don’t understand social media. That’s how I get all of my clients. That’s how I’ve built my business. Social media is one of my strengths and I use my strengths,’ she said.

Speaking of the objections to her Pilates studio, she added: ‘Around here, not a lot of people are into Instagram. I’m 100 per cent grateful for Instagram but it’s been my best friend and my worst enemy.

‘It’s got all my clients but also been the worst thing because people have been going on and running away with ideas.’

Another major concern raised by neighbours was customer parking for the business.

A total of five customer spaces at the site have been allocated, and a one-way system for customers to gain access to the studio has also been implemented. 

One woman, who did not want to give her name but lives in North Wootton and objected to the Pilates studio, said: ‘My thoughts are there’s very little parking and it’s always been a quiet area and I worry about the disruption and noise.

Megan is seen sitting in a sauna in a promotional video for her wellness business Luco Wellness

‘We have Pilates at the village hall. It’s not as if there’s a paucity of Pilates classes around her.’

Another neighbour also sent a picture of a car outside the Pilates studio that had been parked on communal grass to suggest that Megan’s business was causing traffic problems.

Megan’s uncle, Lee Smith, said they have even had ‘people driving past and taking pictures’ of their cars. 

A number of residents went a step further and instructed a local planning firm to write to the council, calling for the application to be rejected, claiming it failed to comply with local planning rules. 

The letter claimed the business would be a ‘detriment’ to nearby residents and the character of the local area, saying it would generate too much noise and provides ‘inadequate on-site parking provision’ for people attending classes.

It read: ‘Whilst the studio building itself may not result in noise disturbance (if windows and doors are kept closed while in use), customers accessing and manoeuvring vehicles within the site, consuming food and drink and gathering in groups, are all of a scale and intensity inappropriate within a predominantly residential area,’ the letter reads.

‘The potential for significant noise and disturbance to existing local residents based on this level of activity is significant and extremely likely to detract from the quiet enjoyment of adjoining residents’ properties.

‘The nature, scale and intensity of business use as proposed is considered wholly inappropriate within a residential area on the basis of the most recent information provided.’

Ms Smith pictured in the doorway of her Pilates business in her garden in Norfolk

It added that the size of the business is ‘incompatible with the peaceful enjoyment of residents’ properties’ and should therefore be located somewhere that is ‘more appropriate to commercial operations of this nature and scale’.

The letter concluded: ‘It is considered that the significant business use proposed is unacceptable based on its detrimental effect on the amenities of existing local residents, would not be in keeping with the residential character of the area, and would generate significant vehicular traffic and activity that cannot be accommodated within the site, to the detriment of highway safety.’

One disgruntled resident who lives opposite the house voiced concerns over the amount of noise coming from classes and cars as people arrive.

They wrote: ‘The opening hours of 6am to 8pm seem to be very long for only 2 planned classes per day of one hour’s duration and if people are attending Pilates classes during this time period we will be subject to sustained periods of additional noise with respect to cars and people coming and going.’

The neighbour added: ‘Our property lies directly opposite and we have only recently moved into this property. We would not have anticipated having a business operating there and are concerned that the quiet area we had moved into is going to be disrupted by this business.’

Another local resident added: ‘It is suggested that this planning application if successful will lead to improvements in participants’ physical and mental health.

‘If this proves to be the case it will be at a cost to the local residents’ mental health. The very local community will not be able to live in symbiosis with this type of project in my medical opinion.’  

Despite objections, councillors backed the new business and unanimously agreed to approve the retrospective change of use of a swimming pool hut at Linnymead on Manor Road to a Pilates studio for a year.

Ms Smith said social media had been her ‘best friend’ as well as her ‘worst enemy’ in building her business 

During the meeting, Cllr Sue Lintern said she ‘fully supports the application’.

‘I applaud this young lady for bringing forward a business in the current climate,’ she said.

‘Having looked for a reformer Pilates class myself, there are very few of them. She has spotted a gap in the market that will hopefully take off well for her.’  

Deputy leader of the council, Cllr Simon Ring, added: ‘I hope the neighbours can get back to how they once were and support this.

‘It is an excellent business, and hopefully happiness will come back to North Wootton.’