27-05-2025
Campaigners 'shocked' by Pury End quarry plan consultation
Campaigners said they were "shocked" a council only sent out 41 notification letters to residents about a controversial quarry project.A proposal from Heritage Quarry Group Ltd (HQGL) would see a new limestone quarry next to the existing one at Pury End, near Towcester in Stop the New Pury End Quarry (SNPEQ) group said a consultation had ignored some houses in the hamlet, a new estate in Towcester and a primary Northamptonshire Council has been invited to respond. HQGL said a minerals and waste local plan had identified the site as suitable to provide crushed rock.
An SNPEQ spokesperson said: "As a group, we are shocked that for such a large site, which could impact the living conditions and health of so many local residents, only 41 letters were sent out by the council notifying residents of the plans."
More than 1.5m tonnes of limestone would be extracted from the site, including about 50,000 tonnes of Pury stone, one of the most finely grained submitted a Freedom of Information request to find out which residents had been response from the Reform UK-controlled council showed that 27 letters had been sent to people in Pury End, which has around 100 houses.A further 14 had been sent to Towcester and nearby villages.
SNPEQ said about 130 homes on The Furlongs, on the edge of Towcester, should have been informed, along with the developer, Persimmon group said Marie Weller Primary School, about 630m (689 yards) from the site, should also have been told because of the "possible impact on children's health".Despite its concerns about the consultation, SNPEQ said its campaign had resulted in 220 objections being sent to the SNPEQ has also submitted an objection letter, saying the new quarry contravenes the local minerals said it had spend £2580 so far on legal advice and publicity.
Stephen Woods, from HQGL, said: "The proposed development was allocated in the Northamptonshire Minerals and Waste Local Plan as a site suitable for the provision of crushed rock to enable a planned supply of aggregates over the plan period."The full planning application was supported by an environmental statement and the proposed development subject to environmental impact assessment, which includes measures to mitigate against any negative impacts of the proposed development."
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