Vacant Burbage car wash and vape store to be flattened for 25 new homes

A former car wash, vape store and window firm are to be flattened to make way for 25 affordable homes. Concerns about traffic safety for the Burbage scheme had been raised, but councillors believed the site would benefit the area.

The plan, put forward by Clarity Property Beta Ltd, centres on the Tolgate Works site in Sapcote Road, Burbage, near Hinckley. It was once occupied by Burbage Windows Ltd, Best4Vapes and a Hand Car Wash but is now empty, with developers keen to breathe new life into the area.

Previously, Clarity Property Beta proposed 27 homes on the site, but this was reduced to 25 following public consultation. The slightly smaller proposal will see all the homes made affordable, but some concerns remain.

In planning documents, Clarity Property revealed that the scheme would be a mixture of four, one-bedroomed flats and 21 two-bedroomed houses. The development would be arranged into two terraced rows of five homes at the front, before the remaining homes and flats would be located to the rear of the site which borders Kids Planet Burbage Day Nursery.

Two parking spaces for each house will be provided, while a single space for each flat is proposed. Access would be created off Sapcote Road through a “central access point”, but Burbage Parish Council, which broadly supported the redevelopment, raised “serious concerns” about this, especially for those potentially living at the front of the development as their parking spaces would be facing out onto Sapcote Road. The council feared highway safety would be compromised if retained in this form.

Street view of the now vacant Tolgate Works in Burbage subject to planning application

However, highways teams raised no concerns about this, saying any impacts on the road network would “not be unacceptable”. Hinckley and Bosworth Borough Council were also satisfied despite the fears, saying the parking and turning provisions were “acceptable”.

The borough council also believed that the project would regenerate the vacant Tolgate Works. In its approval of the scheme, it called the development a “planning gain” in terms of increased affordable homes for residents and believed the housing mix on offer was “acceptable”.

Despite some concerns from parish councillors about the design of the scheme, Hinckley and Bosworth Borough Council felt the project could not be denied. It said the project would “improve the appearance of the site” compared to its current vacant status.