Northampton railway station development set for green light
More than £6 million could be ploughed into public services in West Northamptonshire if a scheme to develop land near Northampton railway station gets the go-ahead from planners next week.
A hybrid proposal to redevelop Northampton’s railway station with a new multi-storey car park, a hotel and up to 280 new homes looks set to be given the green light, after officers recommended the scheme for approval.
The plans, put forward by applicants Blockwork LLP and Network Rail, seek full permission for the new car park and public realm improvements around the station, with outline consent sought for a second phase set to include a new 100-room hotel complex and up to 280 apartments.
Conditions recommended as part of the scheme would see the developers pay over £2.6 million towards expanding education facilities in the area, as well as a further £400,000 towards increased healthcare provision for the residents of the proposed apartments.
The development could also provide a boost for recreational facilities in the area, with a contribution of £800,000 also recommended for provision of sports pitches as well as a potential £2.2m to offset around 8-acres of missing open space provision on the site.
The new six-storey car park intended for construction as part of phase one of the scheme will add 854 parking spaces to the station, scaled back from initial designs which would have seen a nine-storey structure built for over 1,100 cars, in response to traffic and visual concerns from the council.
An artists impression of a proposed new six-storey car park building at Northampton Railway Station. Credit: Bush Consultancy/planning portal
The scheme also drew an objection from Historic England, who said that a “high level of harm” will be caused to the setting of Northampton Castle by the works, adding that insufficient information had been submitted to understand the impact on any non-designated archaeological remains potentially lurking underneath the site.
In a consultation response issued in February 2023, the organisation said those archaeological remains could be of equivalent significance to the scheduled monument itself.
“We maintain that it is clear that through an appropriate scheme, the application site could play an important role in the regeneration of this area,” they wrote in updated comments last year.
“A rare opportunity exists to enhance and better reveal the significance of the castle site, securing public benefits through better accessibility and the ability to engage with it. However, in its current form this application does not appear to have adequate measures in place to
meet the requirements set out in the NPPF.”
As part of recommended conditions for the scheme, a full archaeological report has been requested prior to commencement of any works.
Recommending the plans for approval, a report from West Northamptonshire Council’s planning officer said the scheme would update a “rundown site and a dated car park”, providing a “significantly positive transformation” for the area.
“The development is intended to breathe new life and activity into a currently underutilised and uninspiring key location in the centre of Northampton adjacent to the train station,” they wrote.
“There are also drawbacks in that there is a degree of harm to the setting of the nearby heritage assets; and concerns regarding the construction works and how they may cause harm to any archaeological remains and the significance of the Scheduled Ancient Monument, however, such harm will be safeguarded by the appropriate mitigating conditions.”
The scheme will be decided by West Northamptonshire Council’s planning committee on Tuesday, 21 October.
Documents and plans relating to the scheme are available to view on the authority’s planning portal using reference WNN/2023/0083.
