Plans for large glamping and caravan park near Belvoir Castle

The largest caravan club in the country is seeking permission to create a 150-pitch strong campsite and glamping park near Belvoir Castle. South Kesteven District Council has received a planning application for the extension of a caravan site at Sedgebrook Road in Woolsthorpe by Belvoir, just outside of Grantham.

It is for a near 10-hectare development that would host 140 touring caravan and motorhome pitches, as well as 15 glamping units and 10 camping pitches. It would be within walking distance of popular attraction Belvoir Castle.

The remainder of the site would be used for a reception building and toilet block, with provision for site staff accommodation, alongside a play area for residents and guests to utilise. The application has been submitted by the Caravan and Motorhome Club, dubbed as Europe’s largest touring community.

It is a membership group for thousands of people who enjoy caravanning and the great outdoors. The club is a network that operates across the country, running 160 sites and holding 385,000 members.

The current president of the club is Thomas Edward Coke, the eighth Earl of Leicester, and with this site being right alongside the border for Leicestershire — it could be a case of the Caravan and Motorhome Club broadening its options in this immediate vicinity.

Artist’s impression of glamping pod

The park would create six full-time and two part-time positions, if approved, and translates to a large-scale expansion of what is currently a small caravan site of around one hectare, and agricultural land. Estimates within the submitted planning application forecast an annual spend of £3.88 million based on previous “extensive experience in the sector” for the applicant, translating to “substantial support to the local rural economy.”

It would see the current Dirty Duck public house car park permanently closed to make way for fresh road access and 186 new vehicle parking spaces, operated all year round alongside the caravan park. The applicant is confident this will be given the go-ahead, saying in the planning statement that “significant economic benefits” from the park would meet the council’s visitor economy objectives.

The application was validated by South Kesteven District Council on Monday, February 26, with the applicant currently awaiting a decision from the council. The Caravan and Motorhome Club has been contacted for comment.