Council approves large pond development

The pond would be 2m (6.5ft) deep with 20 degree sloping sides and would “provide high levels of diversity”

A large pond planned for a village would "not have an impact on the character of the area", a council has said.

Vale of White Horse District Council has approved the 1,200 sq m development in Sparsholt, near Wantage, Oxfordshire.

The applicant, Sparsholt Manor Farms, said the pond would lie "within a newly planted woodland creation scheme".

It added it would be fed by natural rainfall and the surrounding pastureland.

District council officers said there were no residential properties that would be affected in the area, and the proposal did not require formal highway access or parking.

"Whilst the pond will be large, it would not harm the character or appearance of the wider landscape," a council report stated.

The pond will be dug to a depth of 2m (6.5ft) with 20 degree sloping sides and “provide high levels of diversity”, it added.

The soil removed to create the required depth would be be used to "create grass sown banks around the pond edge”.

Sparsholt Manor Farms added it would be “fed via natural rainfall and surface runoff from surrounding pastureland”.