Land East Of, Catthorpe Road, Swinford Data via plota.co.uk

2026/3188/OAC - Other Authority Consultation 10 - Observatiosn Made

Proposal

Erection of a new air ambulance base, including a building comprising helicopter hangar, staff rest and training spaces, offices and other ancillary floorspace, and 2no. helipads, a Final Approach and Take Off area (FATO), along with security perimeter fencing, access from Swinford Road / Main Street, and parking, landscaping, attenuation, and other ancillary works, Land East Of, Catthorpe Road, Swinford Data via plota.co.uk

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View original council record ↗Last checked 17 Oct 2026, 21:38

Application progress

✓

Received

31 Jul 2026

Decision

Target date was 21 Aug 2026

Under consideration

No decision has been issued yet. Plota predicts a decision around 29 Oct 2026, from West Northamptonshire's recent commercial and major works.

Documents

View the documents on the council's website ↗

Site constraints 4

Agricultural land, grade 3a

Best and most versatile land (grades 1, 2 and 3a). Source: the Predictive Agricultural Land Classification Map (Defra and Natural England, 2025; the Welsh Government's Predictive ALC Map 2 in Wales), a model rather than a site survey. Natural England's Provisional ALC map (1:250,000, 1970s), which most planning maps still show, had this area as grade 2. The predicted grade is Defra's current estimate; only a site survey settles it.

Where development of farmland is needed, policy prefers poorer land over the best and most versatile (grades 1, 2 and 3a). Three sources: Natural England's post-1988 field surveys, which are definitive where they exist; the Defra predictive map for England (2025) and the Welsh Government predictive map, modelled from the soil map with 3a and 3b split; and the 1970s provisional map, which planners and other services still show, coarser and with grade 3 undivided. Where the provisional and predicted grades disagree, treat the predicted grade as the current estimate and expect an application to carry its own survey.

Also on the record

Radon affected area, class 3; Priority habitat about 24 m away: Deciduous woodland; National infrastructure project about 1446 m away: The Grand Union Canal Transfer, at pre-application.

Not affected

Outside flood zones 2 and 3 · Not green belt · No scheduled monument at the site

Checked on 6 October 2026. The pin for this application is the centre of its postcode rather than the building, so distances to nearby designations are measured from the postcode and can be out by the width of the postcode area. Historic England, the Environment Agency, Natural England, the Planning Inspectorate, the British Geological Survey and UK Health Security Agency (radon, contains BGS materials © UKRI) and council datasets, Open Government Licence. A boundary can run through a site and the council holds the definitive record: confirm with the council before relying on this.

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Important details

Council: West Northamptonshire
Application type: Other Authority Consultation
Received: 31 Jul 2026
Validated: 31 Jul 2026
Target decision: 21 Aug 2026
Decision level: Delegated

Decision outlook

Day 90, past the statutory target. 63% of commercial and major works in West Northamptonshire are decided within thirteen weeks, which runs to 30 Oct 2026; extensions of time are common, and the council need not decide on the day. Last seen undecided on 13 Sept 2026.

target

predicted

Day 9034 days past the 56-day target

25%decided within 8 weeks

92%approved

65decided in the last year

Plota live figures for commercial and major works decided by West Northamptonshire in the last twelve months, from validation. West Northamptonshire decision record →

West Northamptonshire

Planning Authority Score

1.7/10

Poor

#280 of 296 councils

Relevant to this application:

Householder decisions

West Northamptonshire is one of the slowest councils in England for householder decisions, ranking #295 out of 296. The council extends the time limit on 79% of applications - one of the highest rates in England. Expect your application to take longer than the standard deadline. Householder applications are slightly more likely to be approved here (93%) than the national average (90%).

Among the slowest councils in England

for householder decisions

These figures are council-wide context, not a prediction for this application. View full council performance

West Northamptonshire decision statistics

Based on MHCLG data, the year to March 2026

90%

Overall approval rate

Above avg (87%) #123 of 296

93%

Householder approved

Above avg (90%) #144 of 296

18%

Decided in 8 weeks

Below avg (63%) #295 of 296

79%

Extended time limit

Above avg (41%) #295 of 296

81%

Minor dwellings approved

170 decided (1-9 homes)

83%

Major dwellings approved

24 decided (10+ homes)

86%

Change of use approved

207 decided

1,832

Total decisions

179 refused in the year to March 2026