Plans for large warehousing development near Thrapston will go to council planning committee to decide if it would have approved the project

The large logistics site was referred to the planning inspectorate earlier this year after North Northamptonshire Council (NNC) failed to make a decision on the site for more than three years.

The authority has now published a report stating that it would have recommended approval.

A public inquiry has been scheduled for the proposals for a 50,000 sqm warehouse and outline plans for a larger storage and distribution zone on approximately 60 hectares of farmland known as Castle Manor Farm, next to the A14.

The site is to the east of the Haldens Parkway industrial estate and would be accessed via a new roundabout.

Though the project is now completely in the hands of the appeals process, the council’s decision on whether to grant permission will be used as integral evidence for the planning inspectorate and reflected in its ultimate decision.

According to planning documents submitted by applicant Equites Newlands (Thrapston East) LTD, the entire site seeks consent for up to four large scale B8 storage and distribution warehouses with a maximum height of 24m and a gross internal area of 200,000 sqm.

NNC has stated that there have been more than 800 comments made by members of the public on the plans, with objections relating to traffic and infrastructure, environmental impacts, location concerns and irreversible damage on heritage areas.

A further 15 parish councils in the vicinity, including Thrapston Parish Council, have also unanimously urged NNC to refuse planning permission.

The controversial plans have also led other statutory consultees to object to them, including the Council for the Protection of Rural England (CPRE) and the council’s own Planning Policy team. Historic England also raised heritage concerns due to a number of nearby assets, adding that they must be carefully weighed against public benefits.

The Planning Policy team has said that the proposals conflict with the North Northamptonshire Joint Core Strategy.

For example, it says Thrapston is a market town and is not identified as a preferred or allocated site for logistics and distribution, which should be located in ‘growth towns’ such as Corby and Rushden.

It also added that insufficient evidence has been provided as to why other proposals that comply with the strategy have been overlooked.

In contrast, NNC’s head of economic strategy has voiced support for the proposals, citing economic benefits such as a strong market demand for logistics sites, a ‘prime location’ with access to major roads, and an estimated £4 million in annual business rates.

The report ultimately found that the ‘substantial benefits’ of the project outweighed the harm and recommended that the committee conclude that planning permission would’ve been given.

Campaign group Staunch has sent out letters to planning members, urging them to critically review the report. They raised concerns that the council’s own planning policy team‘s objections have been ignored.

Their statement reads: “The author of the report undermines the credibility of your own officers. There are many other aspects of this report that downplay the permanent damage to be caused to your environment, your habitats, and your highway safety.

“Look at the site itself – recognise the substantial impact to this area. Most importantly, protect and support the integrity of your policy officers.

“Decision makers have a duty to ensure that, particularly strategic scale developments, are in the right place, are sustainable and that they have been selected as the least sensitive and least damaging to other material interests. The author of this report has failed you in this statutory duty.”

Developer Newlands said in its planning statement that the application is in ‘direct response to very strong market demand for additional employment sites and premises in the area’.

It estimated the site would create around 2,700 jobs in ‘new, high-quality employment facilities’.

The inquiry is scheduled to begin on July 22 according to the planning inspectorate.

A spokesman for North Northants Council said that at the meeting on Wednesday, June 11, members will be asked to confirm what decision they would have made on the scheme, had an appeal not been submitted.

They added: “The consideration of all planning applications starts with an assessment of whether the proposal accords with planning policy.

"Then there is a balancing of all other considerations such as Government guidance, consultation responses and the specifics of the development being proposed.

“In this instance the recommendation from the planning case officer details the departure from policy but concludes that factors such as the strong demand for the type of facility proposed, the specific locational requirements of these facilities, and the benefits to the local and regional economy, and job creation, weigh in favour of the proposals.

“The planning committee will consider the application, including the officer’s recommendation and advice, plus consultation responses received, at the meeting and reach their own conclusion.”