Councillors on the Planning Committee last night voted 10 to 5 in favour of rejecting the application for an industrial development and so-called Science Park at Inlands Farm in Lower Wanborough. It was a sign of just how important this decision was considered to be that many Councillors contributed to the debate, including the Leader of the Council, with feelings running high on both sides.

John Warr, the Group’s Chair, commented: “The South Swindon Protection Group, on behalf of hundreds of local residents, are delighted with last night’s result

This has just been posted by the Ridgeway Ward Councillor Gary Sumner, letters referred attached. The applicants (Wasdell) have sent two emails this week via their Swindon based PR company (since officers recommended REFUSAL of the application) to all Councillors at SBC (including members of the Planning Committee). The emails apply clear pressure on councillors to ignore officers recommendations

The Planning Report on the development proposal at Inlands Farm, Lower Wanborough has just been published a week ahead of the planning meeting to decide the application on 25th August 2020. In its 77-page report the Swindon Borough Council Planning Officers have concluded that virtually every aspect of the application should be rejected, citing a plethora of significant technical planning deficiencies and noting these far outweigh any economic benefits claimed. 

The Planning Meeting to determine the fate of this development proposal is to be held on 25th August 2020.

The SSPG is gratified to see the thoroughness of the Officers’ report, and their overwhelmingly unequivocal rejection of every aspect of the proposal, especially as they gave due consideration to the economic benefits claimed as well as the technical planning issues. Our consultants have never seen a more comprehensive and well articulated report detailing reasons to refuse an application. Read an extract from the report with nearly 20 reasons for refusal.

Local protest group, the South Swindon Protection Group, noted that the two applications to develop industrial land in Lower Wanborough have together caused 1750 responses from Swindon residents, over 80% of which were objecting to the proposal. The Group has repeatedly called for the revised application for a proposed land development in Lower Wanborough to be thrown out by SBC’s Planning Committee.