News

8th November marks World Town Planning Day when planners and communities across the world come together to celebrate how good planning can improve the lives of people and benefits society, creating places to live, work and play together. This year’s theme is ‘Learn Globally, Apply Locally’ and focusses on the value of learning from planning and different planning cultures globally, developing innovative, sustainable and equitable solutions to address global challenges.

We were pleased to hear that the next seven stages of the Wycombe Film Studios in High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire received unanimous approval at planning committee!

Wardell Armstrong’s multidisciplinary team have been involved with this high profile project since 2021, and have assisted in the preparation of assessments for flood risk, drainage, ground conditions, air quality, noise and utilities. Our team were also involved in the liaison to support two temporary planning submissions and one permanent planning submission. We are now in the process of submitting a proposal to support discharge of drainage, noise and odour related conditions.

Wardell Armstrong has successfully secured planning permission for a new Household Waste Recycling Centre (HWRC) and Waste Transfer Station (WTS) on a former industrial site, and a replacement HWRC on an existing waste site in Walsall, on behalf of Walsall Metropolitan Borough Council (the Council).

Building Information Modelling (BIM) and Digital Engineering processes offer many benefits, realised through improved communication between asset owners, designers, engineers, contractors and other stakeholders, as well as improved working efficiencies and reduced potential for errors. 

In recognition of our investment in this rapidly developing area, our Stoke-on-Trent office is the first to receive accreditation to ISO19650-2, covering the full range of services that we offer. This latest accreditation complements our existing ISO9001, ISO14001 and ISO45001 accreditations; providing confidence that the full range of in-house services and technical disciplines that we offer is to the very highest standards within the industry, whether that is civil and structural engineering, landscape design, ground engineering, ecology or archaeology and heritage.

Wardell Armstrong are delighted to share the news regarding the recent approval of two solar and battery storage projects for our client Renewable Connections, in West Lothian and Aberdeenshire, Scotland. Both projects will make a considerable contribution to Scotland’s green energy network, by helping to meet national targets with regard to decarbonising the energy system and producing more energy via renewable means.

Our multidisciplinary team provided planning, community engagement and environmental assessment support for both projects, including landscape and visual, ecology, noise, glint and glare, heritage and archaeology, traffic and flood risk.

Wardell Armstrong are pleased to announce that proposals for the UK’s largest Gigafactory have been given the green light, with Coventry City Council and Warwick District Council planning committees supporting the outline planning application.

A Gigafactory is a facility to manufacture batteries for the automotive sector, at scale. Such a facility is critical to the future of the electric automotive sector both in the West Midlands and the UK, given the rapid shift towards electric vehicles. The proposals are being progressed by joint venture partners, Coventry City Council and Coventry Airport Ltd.

Wardell Armstrong co-ordinated the Environmental Impact Assessment for the proposals, as well as undertaking the assessments of Noise and Vibration, Air Quality, Climate Change, Risks of Accidents and Disasters, and Human Health.

Our planning team have recently secured permission for two major renewable energy infrastructure projects within the Green Belt on behalf of Severn Trent Water Ltd.

Wardell Armstrong was commissioned by Severn Trent Water to prepare and manage Planning Applications for a Thermal Hydrolysis Plant (THP) and gas to grid facilities at both Stoke Bardolph and Finham Sewage Treatment Works.

Our planning experts project managed the preparation and submission of the planning applications supported by technical assessments carried out by our multidisciplinary team, including an Ecological Appraisal, Biodiversity Impact Assessment and mitigation proposals, as well as Air Quality and Noise Assessments.

We have been assisting our client Local Generation Ltd for a number of years to establish and update an Anaerobic Digestion (AD) Plant at their site in Westry, Cambridgeshire. As the technology for AD rapidly evolves, Local Generation are continually assessing their site operations and how the process can be made more efficient and environmentally and commercially beneficial.

AD is the process by which organic waste is biologically treated in the absence of oxygen using naturally occurring micro-organisms to produce biogas which contains principally methane but also a significant proportion of carbon dioxide.

Coventry City Council has been looking into the technical and economic viability of developing a ~175,000 tonnes per annum Materials Recycling Facility (MRF), to process the Council (and seven partner councils) domestic and commercial collected recyclate. The facility would also provide an opportunity for the region to optimise recycling rates, enhance recyclate quality, deliver higher returns and greater landfill diversion.

Wardell Armstrong has been involved in the project from its commencement in 2017 at the feasibility stage through to our current role as Project Manager and Technical and Planning Advisor during the procurement, design, planning and delivery phase. Alongside procuring the process and civils contractors for developing the MRF, our team has also been working with the Council and stakeholders on the planning application. Due to the scale and nature of the development, a full Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) was required, and the site (severely overgrown and disused allotments) has not been short of its challenges.

We are delighted to confirm that we secured planning permission for Cinnamon Retirement Living for a care village in Inveresk, East Lothian. East Lothian Council voted unanimously to approve the proposal and commended the quality of the care village services.