Council to consider country park plans

County planners will next week consider a scheme to build 45 glamping lodges at a country park near Tenbury.

Darwin Leisure Development Properties wants to change the use of the on-site home to a holiday let at Bleathwood Lodges Country Park.

The plans include building replacement facilities, a meet and greet building and maintenance building and access and parking at the Old Hopyard in Bleathwood.

All the existing buildings on the park are to be removed or demolished apart from the house next to the park entrance which would be kept as a holiday let.

The just under 12-acre site currently has planning permission for the siting of 60 touring pitches, 100 tents, eight glamping pods and six static caravans for holiday let.

The latest plans for the park originally sought permission for 60 lodges, but this has been reduced to 45.

Consultants working for the scheme say they have designed a sensitive redevelopment scheme aimed at attracting high-end holiday guests.

“The move away from touring caravans is an intrinsic part of the Darwin model that will encourage year-round visitors and support full time employment,” they said in the planning statement.

“This will provide year-round support for other businesses in the wider area with additional visitors during the off-peak season and more constant visitor levels overall.

“It will also remove slow moving touring traffic from the local rural highway.”

However, more than 80 residents have also objected to the plans with concerns of the development’s scale, light and noise pollution, increased traffic, lack of public transport and the impact on the environment.

Bleathwood and Little Hereford parish council is strongly opposing the plans.

They say the scheme is disproportionate to the surroundings orural area and that the nearby road network is in a bad state of repair

But the plans have received 119 letters of support from people who say it will provide jobs and boost the economy, it suits its surroundings and will allow city folk to enjoy the countryside.

They also say the plans have an eco-friendly approach and would provide minimal disruption and would become an asset for the area and county.

Herefordshire Council planning officers have recommended approving the scheme subject to conditions.

Councillors will consider the plans at next week’s planning and regulatory committee meeting at 10.30am on October 13.