A former soft play centre in the south of the county is set to officially become a storage facility under plans approved by Wiltshire Council.
Warminster’s Little Urchins soft play centre shut down permanently during the Covid-19 lockdowns after the owner said she didn’t have the funds to get through the crisis without taking on massive loans.
The pirate-themed play centre was located in the privately-owned Woodcock industrial estate and had been unofficially used as storage since its closing.
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The application stated that the new use of the site would have “significantly less opportunity to generate noise nuisance, with less vehicular movements”.
Wiltshire Council gave the applicant the go-ahead on Wednesday, September 25.
In other planning news, Trowbridge Rugby Club has been denied permission to use land as an overflow car park.
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According to the council’s planning officers, there was a lack of ecology information within the plans.
It also noted that the applicant had failed to provide “sufficient information relating to the various uses already taking place at the site, which impact the use of the car park”.
The case officer referred to the use of the ByBox storage lockers, as well as the “ongoing unauthorised use of the site” by We Buy Any Car.
The refusal stated: “The Council is concerned that whilst this application is seeking permission for 90 additional overflow spaces, the applicant wishes to retain its overflow car parking provisions at Paxcroft Farm, which indicates it is uncertain as to the actual numbers of spaces required.
“When the Council’s Highways Officer asked for such details at Paxcroft Farm, the applicant was not forthcoming.
It added: “The proposals for further diversification and additional, yet unjustified, parking lead the Council to conclude that the best way forward is via a comprehensive application, fully supported by technical reports, to justify the range of additional uses to which the Rugby Club clearly aspire.”
Up in Chippenham, the Museum and Heritage Centre has applied to install new signage outside the building.
The venue has recently expanded and Chippenham Town Council wants to draw attention to the refurbished centre.
The application states: “The proposed signage strategy has been developed in response to the expansion of the museum into No. 11, to address the lack of visible signage when the buildings are viewed from the east, and to generally better advertise this important community facility, whilst doing so in a sensitive manner which does not detract from the significance of the heritage assets.”
Finally, in Tidworth, an old police station is set to be converted back into two homes.
After the consolidation of police forces across the country, the site has not had a staffed walk-in service for several years and has only been used for administrative purposes.
The applicant, Gainsborough Group Construction Ltd, said it was “difficult to see how it could be utilised for any other purpose, whether that be community-based or commercial”.
The plans stated: “The proposal is for taking the former police station back to its original use as two dwellings, now that reorganisation of the police force has resulted in the station being considered redundant.”
Details of planning decisions made by Wiltshire Council can be viewed on the planning and building control public register.
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