Planning application – Mill Road depot

We are applying to update some existing planning conditions for the Mill Road Depot (reference 2025/3216) to keep waste services running smoothly and efficiently. There will be no physical changes to the site, and all other conditions will stay the same. 

The application will formally recognise the operating hours as 

• 6am to 8pm Monday to Saturday
• and 6am to 6pm on Sundays and Bank Holidays
• and to remove the limit on the number of vehicles that cannot use the bridge. 

At the moment operations run from 6:30am to 6pm Monday to Saturday (including Bank Holidays) and 8am to 4pm on Sundays with some further restrictions for movements along certain roads during peak hours. However, maintaining the level of service expected by our residents often requires operations to continue beyond these hours. The planning application seeks to regularise and formalise these necessary extended operating times.

Why is this needed?

At the moment, the current restrictions make it very difficult to complete all scheduled rounds with the number of vehicles and staff agreed in the contract and does not reflect the actual operation of the site.

If we don’t update these conditions, the new waste contractor will need to add more vehicles and staff to finish the same work in shorter hours. This would mean:

• more lorries on the road for residents
• higher costs for the council and residents

This does not change any of the planning conditions for the other businesses that operate on the wider industrial estate and their vehicles.

Updating the conditions now will help us avoid these issues and keep services efficient. It also allows flexibility for situations like heatwaves, when we need to start rounds earlier to protect staff wellbeing while ensuring collections are completed.

The application is available on the council’s website for public consultation and will be considered by the Planning Committee early next year. We will be arranging a further briefing for ward councillors in January.