protesters are claiming partial victory after the Secretary of State's decided to delay the retrospective planning permission for the £250,000 Kingswear station 'signal box' offices for an as of yet undetermined period.

This comes after South Hams Council's development management committee voted to approve the building of the railway station office – which went ahead despite having no prior planning permission.

However, local residents who opposed the decision asked for the Government to review the situation.

Secretary of State for Local Government Eric Pickles has ordered South Hams Council not to grant permission on the applications without specific authorisation.

This means the original five-day delay of signing off the committee's decision will be extended for an as yet undetermined period to allow the Government to consider whether or not the application should be determined under the 'called-in' procedure.

The plans for the station offices as associated works, which required removal of some track, would then be decided by an independent planning inspector.

A spokesman for protest group Kingswear Action on Rail and Riverboat Development said: 'Use of the "called-in" procedure is exactly what Kingswear Parish Council, ward members and KARRD have consistently requested and have been denied by South Hams Council.

'It is gratifying to know that problems residents of Kingswear are experiencing are now on the Secretary of State's radar.'

Dartmouth Steam Railway and Riverboat Company is maintaining it did not need to apply for planning permission prior to building the offices as it is a railway company and is therefore exempt.

However, members of KARRD have noted that the Localism Act 2010 contains a requirement for developers to consult local communities prior to submitting planning applications in order to give local people a chance to have a say.

A KARRD spokesman said: 'It is a matter of record that the company did not consult residents of Kingswear, Kingswear Parish Council, or our democratically mandated ward members at any time.'

Railway company general manager Andrew Pooley, maintains the company 'did everything correctly'.

The railway company only submitted applications for planning permission for the office block and a listed building consent for the track removal after South Hams Council was forced to bring in outside legal experts to examine the issue.

Kingswear campaigners claim that the office is an eyesore, blocking views across the estuary towards Dartmouth.

A spokesman for South Hams Council said: 'We can confirm that we have received a letter from the Secretary of State at the Department for Communities and Local Government referring to the retrospective planning applications at Kingswear railway station, Dartmouth, and we are complying with his wishes.'