Sky Studios expansion receives 1,700 objections

Save Hertsmere said the plan was "urban sprawl" that would affect "an area with a country pub, stables, one track roads, and horse riders"

More than 1,700 people have objected to the expansion of Sky Studios in Elstree.

A planning application has been submitted to add 10 sound stages to the yet-to-be-opened site in Hertfordshire.

Campaign group Save Hertsmere said the extension would mean "urban sprawl right up to the pretty hamlet of Well End, with all the noise, light and traffic pollution that brings".

Sky Studios Elstree was "committed to working in partnership with the local community, including Save Hertsmere, who are members of our Community Board".

The current facility in Elstree has 13 sound stages on a 32-acre site and is due to open at the end of the year.

It will be will be used by Sky, other Comcast-owned firms including NBC Universal, and be open to third parties.

The film adaptation of the musical Wicked is due to be the first feature film made at the studios.

The planned expansion will add to the sound stages as well as additional open space, and a permanent back lot for filming outdoor scenes.

According to the plans the site's car park would have a "living wall" to reduce the visual impact, and a new "large wet grassland" would be created.

British Oscor nominee Cynthia Erivo will star in Wicked, which is due to be the first film made at Sky Studios Elstree

Save Hertsmere said it was "an area with a country pub, stables, one track roads, and horse riders".

"The land is full of biodiversity," the campaign group said.

The group, which has also objected to a solar plant and three housing developments in the area, said there were brownfield sites nearby which were more appropriate for the development.

A spokesperson for Sky Studios Elstree said the proposed expansion of would "deliver an additional 2,000 jobs and enable £2bn of new production investment over the first five years of operation".

They said "a significant number of environmental and bio-diversity surveys and studies" had been conducted.

"None of which have highlighted any signs of protected wildlife and the overall scheme will contribute to over 10% net gain in biodiversity in the borough," they added.

A planning application for the site, called Sky Studio Elstree North, was submitted to Hertsmere Borough Council in September.

It was not known when the application would be heard by the authority's planning committee.