Honey processing building at Land to north East Corner of Highfield Lodge Ulley Lane, Aughton

What was proposed

The application sought permission for a modular building to process honey and wax, with storage, work areas and associated equipment.

“The submitted details indicate that the construction of the proposed building will be a modular building clad in green corrugated sheeting. The floor plan includes storage areas and a work area.”

“The proposed unit is to be used for the processing of bee hives for honey and bees wax products. De-capping machinery will be installed for carrying out the extraction of the wax and honey. There will be a clean hygiene area for cleaning and filling jars. Areas to be created for the storage of processed honey and wax products, consumables, containers and tools, also storage for bee keeping safety clothing, associated accessories, and new bee hives.”

Officer report

The site

The site is a small field on Aughton’s edge, partly used for beekeeping and partly for longstanding equestrian purposes.

“The application site is a small field located on the edge of Aughton, accessed off Ulley Lane. The field is currently used partly for bee keeping and partly for equestrian purposes and as such has a mixed use. The existing stables and equestrian use appears to be longstanding and the existing building has been in place since at least 2009.”

Officer report

Officers’ recommendation

Officers recommended refusal because they considered the proposal inappropriate Green Belt development that would reduce openness and lacked very special circumstances.

“The proposed building would introduce a permanent structure into an area currently characterized by open fields and minimal built development. This change would materially reduce the openness of the Green Belt, both visually and spatially, by increasing the built footprint and creating a sense of encroachment into previously undeveloped land.”

“However, for development on Grey Belt land to be appropriate it still has to accord with requirement of paragraph 155(b), that: “There is a demonstrable unmet need for the type of development proposed”. In this instance, a small industrial type unit for the processing of honey could be operated from a wide range of small scale industrial units within the Borough for which there is no shortage.”

Officer report

Other planning effects

The building’s design was considered acceptable, and traffic, noise and wastewater impacts were not considered reasons for refusal.

“In terms of the appearance and siting of the building itself, Local Plan Policy SP7 ‘New agricultural or Forestry Buildings or Structures in the Green Belt’ states that: “All proposals will require careful assessment as to the impact and appropriateness of the development; consideration will be given to the size, scale, position, screening, enclosures, lighting and design of the buildings.”

“The design of the building is considered to be acceptable for an agricultural building, notwithstanding the fact that it is considered that the use is not an agricultural one and that insufficient evidence of the need for an agricultural building or any evidence of agricultural activity on site has not been provided.”

Officer report

Consultation responses

Transportation raised no objection, while Environmental Health said it could not control the number of hives on site.

“RMBC – Transportation Infrastructure Service: No objections due to the limited number of proposed traffic movements…”

“RMBC Environmental Health: Confirmation that they cannot control the number of bee hives on site.”

Officer report

Objections received

Four objections and a 39-signature petition raised concerns about bees, commercial use, Green Belt development, noise, smells and non-native bees.

“The amount of bees on site are excessive and are causing disturbance and harm to neighbours. • The building will be predominantly used for online sales, rather than food production. • The proposed reeds bed waste water treatment system will cause smells.”

“1) The already large quantity of bees on this site causes damage to cars, outdoor furniture and washing due to bee ‘poo’ they release in flight. They also swarm our gardens especially around water features, bird baths and ponds making it difficult to sit outside during the warmer months. They are too close to residential homes. 2) The land is classed as Green Belt therefore no building should be erected on it due to it being a commercial enterprise.”

Officer report

People who asked to speak

Requests to speak were received from the applicant and two objectors.

The committee’s decision

The committee refused the application for the reasons adopted at the meeting and listed in the report.

“(2) That application RB2022/1785 be refused for the reasons adopted by Members at the meeting and as listed in the submitted report.”

Minutes