JOINT STATEMENT BY BENTLEY AND COPDOCK & WASHBROOK PARISH COUNCILS : BROCKLEY WOOD APPROVAL QUASHED
Today, the Royal Court of Justice has quashed the planning permission granted by Suffolk County Council (SCC) for the extraction, processing and sale of sand and gravel together with the processing of inert waste materials including concrete crushing at Brockley Wood.
This is a direct result of action taken by Bentley and Copdock & Washbrook Parish Councils and a small group of Bentley residents, on behalf of their local communities. This action was taken to hold SCC to account for their unlawful approval of this application and is just reward for the enormous amount of work undertaken by those individuals.
With planning approval quashed, all work on the site should cease as there is no longer any lawful basis for such works to be undertaken.
Suffolk County Council have agreed that the applicant will need to re-consider their application in the light of the site being designated as a Valued Landscape. They confirm that this will include re-consultation on any revised plans or documents submitted in order to ensure that SCC review all grounds of our Judicial Review Claim relating to Valued Landscape, HGV movements, noise levels for local residents and land raising issues, all of which must be considered lawfully.
Both Councils will engage with elected representatives at District & County level to do all they can to work together to ensure any subsequent application will have the least impact on our local communities and our valued landscape. We will continue to hold Suffolk County Council to account for the manner in which this process is conducted.
We will update residents on developments as they unfold.
Cllr Marianne Munday
Chair of Bentley Parish Council
Cllr Adrian Ward
Chair of Copdock and Washbrook Parish Council
29 August 2024