Advance Point approval scrapes through

Nelson-based contractor Barnfield Construction has been granted consent to build 36 industrial units totalling 110,000 sq ft off Rossendale Road in Burnley.

Councillors voted to approve Barnfield’s proposals by a slim margin, with eight in favour and seven voting against the proposals at a Burnley Council’s planning committee meeting.

The industrial estate, known as Advance Point, is to comprise units ranging from 2,100 and 6,460 sq ft and feature 166 car parking spaces, on an 11-acre site.  

During the meeting, councillors raised concerns over the impact the development would have on local residents and the location in relation to highways infrastructure.

Cllr Gordon Birtwistle said that it would be dangerous for lorries to attempt to pull out of Advance Point onto “one of the busiest roads in Burnley” and suggested that it would be a better idea to expand existing industrial estates in the area rather than developing a new one.

Campbell Driver is the planner and architect for the scheme, an application for which was lodged in February. 

Plans for the second phase of the project are to be submitted at a later date. 

In June, Barnfield, in a 50:50 joint venture with developer HBD, won consent for a 75,000 sq ft industrial unit at the 18-acre industrial estate known as East, off  the M6 north-east of Preston.