Residents fear the demolition of a Corby warehouse has been 'waved through without basic safeguards' by North Northamptonshire Council

They claim lessons have not been learned from planning mistakes made in the approval of a huge Corby warehouse, where it was discovered that North Northamptonshire Council (NNC) planning officers consulted the wrong street after mixing up the site’s address.

Instead of asking the people of Hooke Close, which backs onto the warehouse site, NNC went to Hubble Road – another street in Corby near the other Weetabix site.

The warehouse was already under construction when people living in Hooke Close realised they would be dwarfed by the massive structure at the end of their back gardens.

The same group of homeowners in Hooke Close claim they have found more procedural mistakes made by the council with the demolition of the Avon/Avarto warehouse in Earlstrees Road.

The building is just next door to the former Weetabix factory, which was unlawfully granted planning permission to be replaced with an intimidating 60ft warehouse.

Arvato has said that no demolition has commenced prior to the necessary approvals and that it is ‘fully committed to following the correct processes’.

NNC has said it is investigating residents’ concerns ‘at pace’ and will respond to them as soon as possible.

In May 2024, the warehouse in question was sold by Avon to logistics specialist Arvato. The company was given permission by NNC at the start of last month to demolish all but a small corner of the premises in order to eventually replace the outdated base with a modernised building.

Separate plans have been submitted for the building that will take its place, but permission is still being sought from the local authority.

Jamie Hume, spokesman for the residents’ group, said that people living near the site were not sent a works notification letter from Arvato, which is legally required before any demolition works can begin.

He also raised concerns that the dust management measures were not being properly implemented and that the lack of approval for a replacement unit could leave the site vacant and ‘blighted’ for an extended period of time.

He said: “Two years after the Weetabix debacle, the council is still waving through major demolitions without basic safeguards.

“We are not anti-development – we are anti-doing-things-backwards.

"You don’t knock down a building before you know you can rebuild, and you don’t ignore protected wildlife and public health just because it’s quicker.

“The council promised change after the former Weetabix factory. Today we see the same shortcuts, the same lack of transparency, the same disregard for common sense.”

The group has written to NNC executive director George Candler to request that the council issue a temporary stop notice to ensure all pre-demolition conditions have been met and confirm whether all relevant consents have been met.

A spokesman for Arvato said: “At Arvato, we take all planning obligations and legal requirements seriously and we are aware of the concerns raised regarding the upcoming works at our Corby site.

"Transparency, legal compliance, and respect for the local community are fundamental to how we operate.

“We can confirm that no demolition has commenced prior to the necessary approvals being granted. All preparatory measures currently underway on-site are in line with the approved planning conditions and have been communicated transparently to the local authority.

“We have submitted the required documentation, including the resident notification letter, and are fully committed to following the correct processes. We are also adhering to environmental regulations, including those related to protected species, as outlined in the ecological assessments and planning documents.

“We are in regular contact with North Northamptonshire Council and will continue to ensure that all activities are carried out in full compliance with planning law.”

Mr Candler added: “We have received correspondence from residents concerning the planned demolition of an industrial unit in Earlstrees Road, Corby and are now looking into this.

“We are investigating at pace and will respond to the residents as soon as we can to update them on the situation.”