Government inspector supports borough council decision to reject Sandiacre fast-food outlet proposals

A Government inspector has flagged that councils can reject fast-food takeaways close to schools after dismissing two planned Greggs and Starbucks drive-throughs in Derbyshire.

Plans for the two drive-through eateries in Bostocks Lane, Sandiacre, next to the M1/A52 Sandiacre Interchanges, were rejected by Erewash Borough Council last year.

The scheme, from Northern Star Assets, would have seen the fast-food restaurants built around 500 metres from the 1,200-student Friesland School and 40 metres from homes.

Head teacher Craig Patterson had made a passionate plea to councillors to reject the plans last September, along with opposition from then Erewash MP Maggie Throup, three parish councils and 40 residents.

Mr Patterson had said: “The desire to nip down for a sausage roll would be overwhelming and strong. There will be such a drive downhill for our students, maybe to abscond.”

Borough councillors rejected the scheme due to the perceived risk of harm to school students walking to and from the facility.

This was despite the lack of objection from Derbyshire County Council and National Highways.

J. Somers, a Government inspector, felt that the safety of pedestrians had not been sufficiently considered by the developers or by the local expert authorities, who had focused on road traffic and congestion.

Dismissing the appeal, the inspector wrote: “The proposed drive-through uses and associated infrastructure would give rise to unacceptable impacts towards highway safety and access to all users, which includes vehicles, cyclists and pedestrians, including school children. 

“There is no convincing evidence presented that these issues could be adequately mitigated, and as such the scheme would cause significant detriment to highway safety.”

The inspector has criticised the lack of assessment of the pedestrian crossing points to access the proposed new drive-throughs.

They also highlighted that on their own visit to the site, the 7.5-tonne weight restriction, barring HGVs and other large vehicles, was repeatedly breached, with residents and the developer themselves also showcasing this county-council-governed traffic regulation order being consistently breached.

The inspector also found that many vehicles were regularly breaching the 30mph speed limit.

Alongside this, the developer’s traffic surveys logged that an average of 1,459 vehicles drove past the site in the morning and 1,282 vehicles in the afternoon, with residents saying this was an underestimate.

The inspector flagged to the council that new national legislation brought in after the authority had made its decision now allows authorities to refuse applications for fast-food takeaways within walking distance of schools or places where young people congregate, unless the site is in the town centre and/or there are already a number of similar uses nearby.

Steve Birkinshaw, the borough council’s head of planning, summarising the appeal decision, had written that this reference was an “unreasonable” criticism but was now national policy.

He said in a meeting last week: “I am not quite sure what to make of this appeal. To have won an appeal on highways grounds without the support of the local highways authority or National Highways is quite an unusual achievement. Please enjoy your moment, committee. The bar has not been raised for the developer. They have not got over the bar twice now.”

Plans for a McDonald’s drive-through were rejected on the same site and rejected at appeal in 2015.

Cllr Wayne Major, who had opposed the “absurd”, “makeshift service station” plans, said: “I hope we have learned some lessons here.

“Derbyshire County Council are not always the definitive answer on highways. 

“The residents of Sandiacre are over the moon that it was rejected.”

Cllr Tim Scott, who had said “Sausage rolls attract kids and we can’t put Friesland kids in danger”, told the meeting that there were “obvious” reasons to reject the scheme and “I feel a little bit vindicated”.

Images (above right) credit: David Cox Architects