LOCAL PLACE. BIG DECISION.
Planning application 26/00745/OM
Please check the official Council application page for the current consultation deadline and application status.
This campaign opposes the proposed development, but we want the case against it to be accurate.
Residents are reviewing planning documents, historic records, professional reports and local evidence.
Where possible, important claims are checked against primary or official sources.
If something turns out to be wrong, we correct it.
Checked against a primary, professional or official source.
Photographs, videos or first-hand observations supplied by residents.
A genuine question has been identified but further evidence or clarification is required.
Residents have obtained and reviewed Hydrock's complete 2020 Phase 1 Ground Conditions Desk Study for Ashwicken Lakes.
Hydrock assessed the overall land-contamination risk for a redeveloped site as moderate, with some specific potentially high risks requiring confirmation through intrusive investigation, testing and assessment.
The report identified potential issues associated with former or reworked quarry ground and also identified geotechnical hazards including variable ground, shallow groundwater, running sands and slope instability.
Hydrock's field photographs recorded signs of collapse on part of the lake shoreline.
Most importantly, Hydrock stated that an appropriate intrusive investigation “will need to be undertaken”.
Residents have not yet independently identified the later investigation in publicly indexed planning material.
That does NOT prove it doesn't exist.
We believe the applicant and Council should be able to identify the subsequent report and demonstrate how Hydrock's recommendations have been addressed for the current proposal.
Hydrock did not conclude that the site was legally “Contaminated Land”.
The question is whether the redevelopment risks identified by Hydrock were subsequently investigated and satisfactorily addressed.
Planning reports don't always show what a place is like on a difficult day.
Useful local evidence may include dated photographs or videos showing:
Keep original files wherever possible and record the date and location.
25 AUGUST 2026
Residents have obtained and reviewed the complete 2020 Hydrock Phase 1 Ground Conditions Desk Study. The report identified ground and redevelopment risks requiring further intrusive investigation. Residents are now seeking confirmation of where that subsequent work appears in the planning evidence.
Official planning application documents, application status and representations. Search for 26/00745/OM.
Open source(opens in a new tab — external website)The adopted Local Plan for the Borough.
Open source(opens in a new tab — external website)National planning policy for England.
Open source(opens in a new tab — external website)