'Upset' family-run business near Northampton speaks out against national developer who has 'taken their business from them'

Sandy Lane Plants, run by Gary and Cheryl Barnett, has faced disruption since 2022, when Miller Homes started building the Sandy Lane Relief Road (SLRR) and the Norwood Quarter housing estate between Duston and Harpole.

The business, now surrounded by two new under construction housing estates and a relief road, has been hit by road closures, changing access routes, construction traffic, and a loss of passing trade.

Speaking to the Chronicle & Echo, Cheryl said: “The road was closed in 2023. That year, takings were down 50 percent. In 2024, it’s closer to 75 percent.

“They told me it would be less than one year, then it went to a year, then it went to 15 months. We had temporary access off the new relief road, which was closed three weeks later, that was in Autumn. Since then, we’ve only been accessible via the housing estate. People can’t find me, and if they do, they feel like they’re driving through a building site.”

On their dealings with Miller Homes, Cheryl said: “It feels like we don’t exist, and it feels like we’re being ignored. The drop in trade is something I didn’t expect, probably foolishly. I was given the impression that the building works would only affect us for a short period of time. We definitely weren’t told it would be at least two years, and looking at it now, it’s going to be more like five.

"But we’re not going anywhere — we want this business to work. We have a lot of regular customers, and we’ll just battle on."

Even when the SLRR opens in May this year, Cheryl says it will not solve the problem. She said: “We’re now hidden in the middle of a housing estate, and they haven’t opened the roundabout that was supposed to help access.”

Despite the adversity, Cheryl says she is “determined” to get the business back to where it was in 2022. She said: "We’ve spent 20 years growing from a very small cottage industry to a viable business. It’s barely a viable business now. I really do feel they’ve taken this from me. I find it really upsetting. But because we spent 20 years building it up, I’ve got 15 years before I retire, and I really want to see it grow again to what it was in 2022."

The business will reopen this Saturday (February 15) after a seasonal winter break, preparing for the spring and summer months.

Responding, a Miller Homes spokesman said: "We have done, and continue to do, everything we can to minimise disruption for those nearby.

"Our senior management team has met with Sandy Lane Plants, and we have put up directional signage, which we remain committed to keeping in place.

"Construction is ongoing near a new access point for the business. As safety is our priority, we cannot yet open this access to the public.

"We will remain in contact with Sandy Lane Plants and advise when it will be safe to open the new access point to drivers.”

Gary and Cheryl previously told this newspaper they have been overlooked throughout the process. In 2024, they said: “Every plan that came forward had a red line showing the site boundary. We’re outside of it. As far as the developers are concerned, we don’t exist.

“West Northants Council (WNC) should not have given Miller Homes planning permission to close the top of Sandy Lane. They should have left it as a through road because they could have built all the houses behind, made their money to fund the new road, but not close the original Sandy Lane until they'd finished the new Sandy Lane Relief Road and then none of this disruption would have happened.”

They were told by both WNC and Miller Homes that they will not be compensated.