Shropshire Star

Plans to transform former scrap yard into taxi business headquarters

A former vehicle scrap yard in south Shropshire could become a new office for a private hire taxi firm under plans submitted to Shropshire Council.

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The application site

If approved, the plan lodged by applicant Ian Elliott would see a new two-storey office building erected on a brownfield site near Tenbury Wells, with parking for 10 vehicles.

A previous application for office accommodation on the 2,450 square metre site on Boraston Bank was approved in 2005 by South Shropshire District Council but despite electrical and groundwork getting underway some five years later in 2010, the development failed to progress.

In a supporting statement, the architects behind the plans said the new building would amend the original scheme into a “simpler, more agricultural looking building” which was more in-keeping with its rural setting.

“The layout of the building offers two large open plan office spaces at ground and first floor with full height windows ensuring natural light and views across the south/west of the site are maximised,” said a supporting statement by architects Orme Ltd," the statement says.

“It will create a bright, spacious, high-quality office space with great connections to the outdoors.”

There are also plans for a wildflower meadow to increase biodiversity levels on the site, with two charging points for electric vehicles provided as part of the ten allocated spaces.

Work undertaken at the site in October 2010 saw around 9,000 tonnes of hardcore brought onto the site to adjust levels leaving onto the road, and mains electrical connections terminated in a small brick structure.

Following an application from the current owner in 2021, Shropshire Council decided this was sufficient to declare the development as having got underway prior to permission expiring for the site.

A decision on the amended scheme will be made by Shropshire Council’s planning department in due course.