Appeal dismissed for 'intrusive' 24,000sqm industrial site on outskirts of Northampton

Plans for a 24,000 square-meter industrial zone in open countryside just outside of Northampton will not go ahead, as developers have been told that their appeal has been dismissed.

The application would have seen 18 warehouses and associated highway infrastructure built on fields next to the Brackmills Industrial Estate, in between Northampton and Great Houghton.

The original plans went to a West Northants planning committee in December 2022 and were rejected shortly after.

Developers Duncan Investments Ltd then appealed the council’s decision.

The government’s planning inspectorate upheld the refusal on the basis of “intrusion” into the open countryside and the harm the “large bulky buildings” would cause to views from the towns.

Original designs for the employment land proposed two blocks of smaller-sized units, a pair of semi-detached units, and five larger stand-alone warehouses, each with its own service yards and parking.

The buildings were to be used for general industry, storage and distribution warehouses, and offices.

The planning inspector took issue with the location of the site, stating that it would close the gap of empty field between the built-up area of Northampton and Great Houghton village, which is seen as a “distinctive” feature of the area. It wrote that the development would harm the Great Houghton conservation area and “interrupt the views” of the current rural setting.

The industrial land would have supported an estimated 279 full-time equivalent jobs and the inspector noted the “substantial benefits” it would have brought for employment land and the economy.

However, it maintained that the council is on track to deliver jobs targets elsewhere.

Planning inspector, Mr Peter Mark Sturgess, found that the benefits of the industrial site did not outweigh its harm and dismissed the appeal.