Controversial holiday resort plans scaled back

An artist's impression of a proposed lodge at the holiday park, near Askam

Plans for a controversial holiday park in Cumbria have been scaled back, under new proposals.

Developers wanted to build a 450-lodge resort at Roanhead Farm, near Askam, Furness, but faced opposition from wildlife groups who called it "inappropriate".

After original plans were pulled, ILM group submitted new proposals to Westmorland and Furness Council, which would see accommodation cut by close to half and dogs not allowed.

Cumbria Local Enterprise Partnership said it was "encouraging" that feedback had been listened to.

Andrew Coutts, the head of ILM Group, described the updated plans as “more balanced and sensitive to the surrounding environment”.

He claimed the resort would create hundreds of local jobs and help support the area’s transformation into a “thriving place to live, work and visit”, the Local Democracy Reporting Service said.

Under new plans, "buffer zones" between the resort and designated nature sites have been expanded, and construction access to the site has been moved from ancient woodland.

Objection letters

The planning application for the original 450-lodge resort, which was withdrawn in November, faced significant opposition.

Those against the plans included Natural England, the National Trust, Cumbria Wildlife Trust and Friends of the Lake District.

A petition called ‘Save Roanhead from Developers’ attracted more than 7,000 signatures, and 3,700 letters of objection were sent to the council.

Friends of the Lake District planning officer Lorayne Wall said: "This is an incredibly sensitive area, inappropriate for this type of development for a multitude of reasons.

"Whilst we note that some changes have been made to the plans, the impacts of a large holiday resort along with the associated traffic and visitor footfall on factors such as the tranquil character of Roanhead and the delicate ecology of the area will nevertheless be substantial and we remain deeply concerned."

However, Jo Lappin, head of the Cumbria Local Enterprise Partnership, said the resort would "provide an excellent base for visitors" to discover and explore the Furness Peninsula and "its natural, industrial and cultural offer.”

The proposals will now go through the council's planning process.