Locals fight Frasers Group plans for huge global HQ near Ansty

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Mike Ashley's firm has lodged proposals for a massive campus incorporating a hotel, leisure facilities and offices



A campaign group has been set up to oppose Frasers Group plans to build a huge global headquarters just outside Coventry. The retail giant, owned by Mike Ashley, has lodged proposals for a massive campus incorporating cutting edge logistics, offices, R&D retail, a hotel, and leisure facilities that would 'put sustainability at the forefront.'

Frasers Group, which bought Coventry Building Society Arena last year after Wasps RFC went bust, want the 275-acre site on Green Belt land south of Ansty - five miles from Coventry city centre - to feature a gym and bookable courts and pitches that would be open to the public. But villagers, in the guise of Save Ansty Green Belt, have slammed the application, claiming an estate that size would swamp Ansty.

The campaign group is hosting an emergency meeting at The Ansty Club at 7pm tonight (December 4) and has called on people to send letters of objection to Rugby Borough Council, which will consider the application in the New Year. The group says the scheme, proposed on the site of Crowner Fields Farm, 'clearly contravenes local planning policy' and would exacerbate traffic problems in the area.

Rugby Borough Councillor Heather Timms is quoted by the group as saying: "This development is in the Green Belt, so valuable an asset. It has not been allocated in Rugby’s Local Plan.

"It is not located on Ansty Park or the Rolls Royce site. This wraps around Ansty village and areas that already have significant traffic issues."

The Save Ansty Green Belt webpage says: "Do you really want this? Warehousing 24 hours a day; three shift changes a day; circa 1,500 HGV movements; 7,500 jobs and staff vehicles; 2,874 parking spaces - that's 874 more than the entire Coventry Building Society Arena.

"Two new major road junctions, a new roundabout on the Hinckley Road from the M6 into Ansty and a new junction on the Brinklow Road, just south east of the golf club entrance. And as if that wasn't bad enough, Rugby Borough Council's Notice of 20th November, now states that they also intend to build a helipad! I don't recall any mention of that in their consultations?"

The group's website adds: "Let's get real here. Ansty’s roads can’t cope with the traffic as it is now - the lights on the crippled bridge cause enough chaos, and if these plans are approved there is likely to be gridlock!

"As you can see from the images, the proposed site is massive! It extends from the M6/M69 junction right across to the B4029 Brinklow Road and completely dwarfs the village of Ansty.

"And it won’t stop there. Frasers Group already have long-term plans to extend their ‘Ansty Campus’ beyond what is proposed with even more buildings in the future, so it is vital that we stop this giant now before it swallows up the entire village."

The deadline for comments about the application is Sunday, December 10. More information about the scheme and how to send observations to Rugby Borough Council, can be found here.

[dutchman]

Retail giant's new HQ bid backed by planners



Retail giant Frasers Group's plans to build a new headquarters on green belt land has been recommended for approval.

The proposals for a "campus headquarters" on 112.9 hectares near Ansty village in Warwickshire include a 100-room hotel, warehouses, research and development facilities, helipad, swimming pool and sports pitches.

Rugby Borough Council received about 200 objections to the scheme, including from eight parish councils.

But council planners said it met "very special circumstances", including providing many economic benefits. It will be considered at a committee meeting on Wednesday.

If approved, the HQ would be referred to the government's National Planning Casework Unit because of its size and green belt location.

Complaints about the proposal at Crowner Fields Farm and Home Farm, Hinckley Road, include over the loss and damage to green belt land.

Objections also include fears of a "significant" increase in traffic; permitting the HQ would "set a precedent" for other green belt development and that damage to the land was irreversible.

Some people also questioned whether "such a large new facility" had demonstrated the special circumstances required under green belt policy, external.

Many of the parties contacted by planners raised no objections, subject to their conditions.

Planning officers recommended the proposal for approval, with more than 90 conditions in place.

The new HQ would replace Frasers Group's main headquarters in Shirebrook, Derbyshire, and put its warehouse operations in the same location.

The retail group's application said this would increase its processing capacity "by up to 50%", with the new campus boosting the UK economy by about £69m per year and would potentially "support up to 750 additional shops with 11,000 new jobs in towns and cities across the country".

Locally, it was estimated the scheme would lead to about 480 construction jobs and the development provide about 5,800 full-time roles, planning officers said.

"The scale of job creation represents a significant uplift in employment for Rugby Borough and therefore holds significant weight," they added.

Frasers was established by Sports Direct founder Mike Ashley, the group's controlling shareholder.

Starting out as a single sportswear shop, the retail empire includes many brands such as Game, Jack Wills and Evans Cycles.

The committee meeting at 17:30 GMT is being shown on a livestream.

[dutchman]

Plans for new Frasers Group HQ approved



Plans have been approved for a new headquarters for Frasers Group on green belt land in Warwickshire.

The retail group said it had outgrown its current site at Shirebrook, Derbyshire, and proposed a "campus headquarters" on 112.9 hectares (279 acres) near Ansty.

The site will include a 100-room hotel, warehouses, research and development facilities, swimming pool and sports pitches.

Frasers Group said it would boost jobs in the Rugby borough by 15% and allow it to expand as a business, contributing an extra £69m to the national economy.

Members of the borough council's planning committee were asked to weigh up these economic benefits against the loss of green belt land.

Planning officers also noted the development would mean a loss of agricultural land and hit trade for local businesses.

But the meeting also heard the site could boost the local economy by 10%, create learning and leisure facilities - which could be enjoyed by the local community - and open up access to wildlife in the area.

A report which went before the committee concluded this created "very special circumstances" which justified the loss of the green belt land.

The council received about 200 objections to the scheme, including from eight parish councils.

Gail Ash, from the Save Ansty Green Belt campaign group, urged councillors to look at alternatives sites not in the green belt.

"It's not just for the benefit for us lucky enough to live in the village, it's for everyone and for future generations," she said.

Warwickshire councillor Adrian Warwick also spoke out against the plans and said: "I don't think I've ever seen a report with so many statutory objectors."

He called for the decision to be deferred and said he believed "policies, the green belt and these people in these villages matter more than money".

Councillor Michael Moran spoke in favour of the development and said: "It's clear to me the development does have significant benefits."

Fellow Labour member Tony Freeman also supported the application and said the council had to show ambition and grasp the opportunity.

He said: "This sort of stuff doesn't come along every couple of years, it comes along once in a generation, so it needs to be very carefully considered."

Conservative councillor Adam Daly opposed the application though and said he was "not completely sold on the economic benefit".

"The benefits of scheme, whilst they are extensive, cannot outweigh the immeasurable harm to the green belt," he concluded.

The committee voted seven to five in favour of the application.