Update on approved Wiltshire industrial estate plans

Developer Berkeley Strategic Land Limited confirmed it intends to put land earmarked for the large development, off Horton Road in Devizes, on the market.

Planning permission was obtained to build up to 25,000sq metres of industrial, storage and distribution, and commercial, business, and service infrastructure at the site.

The significant development was given outline approval on appeal in February, after initially being rejected by Wiltshire Council in 2023.

A spokesperson for Berkeley revealed it does not currently intend to pursue a reserved matters application to move the scheme forward itself, and will instead take the land to market with outline consent.

The firm and its agent Carter Jonas have said the scheme will provide “much-needed employment space” on the outskirts of the town.

READ MORE: Controversial industrial estate plans to be decided on appeal

Plans for the development off Horton Road (Image: Berkeley/Carter Jonas)

Katherine Jones, associate partner at Carter Jonas in Oxford, said: “We are very pleased that this planning application has succeeded on appeal.

“The proposed development will facilitate much-needed employment space, which provides the potential to transform this disused land and benefit the local community through improved pedestrian and cycle links in addition to environmental improvements.”

Berkeley has permission to develop an 18-acre portion of the site, which it purchased from the Ministry of Defence in the late 1990s.

This land has been vacant for a substantial time and has been earmarked for an expansion of the town’s employment base.

The plans will also see highway safety improvements in the area, including a new pedestrian footway and crossing on Horton Road, new routes for cyclists and pedestrians to connect Horton Road with the A361, and financial contributions towards the Devizes Transport Strategy.

During a planning process lasting nearly two years, the proposals proved controversial amongst residents and councillors.

The development off Horton Road (Image: Berkeley/Carter Jonas)

In April last year, Wiltshire Council cited the suitability of the proposed access point, the impact on nearby residential areas, and the issues caused by increased traffic as reasons for refusing planning permission.

253 comments were submitted during public consultations on the proposals and a significant portion of these were residents voicing concerns about the plans.

Residents of the nearby Wellington Drive raised fears about traffic congestion, and noise and air pollution.

One of these commenters, Debbie Wilson, said: “The area around the proposed site is made up of residential estates which consists of a fair mixture of elderly and young families so a major increase of traffic including HGVs would dramatically increase danger to pedestrians.”