‘Vital’ Heathrow support base gets permission to stay permanently in Colnbrook

A ‘vital’ proposal to make Colnbrook Logistics Centre a permanent fixture supporting Heathrow Airport operations has been unanimously approved by Slough Borough Council.

The decision, made at the council’s planning committee meeting on April 23, ends over two decades of temporary planning permissions and cements the site’s role as a ‘critical’ logistics and screening hub for the UK’s busiest airport.

The 9.78-hectare site, situated north of the Colnbrook Bypass and just over half a mile from Heathrow, has operated since 2001 under a series of temporary consents.

The application in question, submitted by site owners SEGRO, sought full planning permission for continued use of the site as a permanent centre, plus a series of upgrades.

Applicants stressed to the council that the logistics centre is ‘a critical piece of infrastructure that supports the daily operation of the airport.’

They claimed no other location offers the same proximity and infrastructure required – and that if councillors did not approve the plans, it would spell bad news for Heathrow and the wider UK economy.

At the planning meeting, a SEGRO representative said it would be ‘difficult to overstate’ how disruptive such a decision would be.

Colnbrook Logistics Centre is in the greenbelt

One of the reasons for the uncertainty surrounding this site is that it is technically in the greenbelt, despite its industrial use.

This means that any development there is considered ‘inappropriate’ by default and needs justifying with ‘very special circumstances’ demonstrated by the applicants.

Such circumstances could include a strong economic argument in favour of the plans.

Slough’s planning team officers noted that Colnbrook Logistics Centre plays a ‘vital role’ in Heathrow’s construction and maintenance projects, with 95 per cent of all building materials passing through the site.

There are other important elements; the Remote Goods Screening Facility, for example, which allows goods to be safely checked and delivered to Heathrow.

It includes a passenger screening area, where security sensitive detainees and their baggage/goods are screened before they are taken onto aircraft. The facility screens about 400 to 450 people each month.

From the point of view of jobs in the area, the site supports around 159 staff, with up to 100 on shift daily. Around 98 per cent of employees live locally.

Key changes proposed at the centre

Key changes include demolishing two admin buildings and replacing them with a single three-storey building featuring office space, welfare facilities, and a new data centre.

A cement shed will be repurposed into a Design for Manufacture and Assembly facility, allowing off-site construction of infrastructure components.

Overall, there would be a net reduction in building floorspace – down by 155sqm to about 17,049sqm.

On transport, the new application includes 139 car parking spaces, 46 cycle spaces, and improved pedestrian access via a proposed toucan crossing over the A4.

For the environment, SEGRO’s application includes native tree planting and wildflower seeding.

Slough council planning officers noted that the proposed landscaping served to improve the appearance of the site.

 On balance, they said ‘given the need, its location and particular characteristics’, the planning team supports the proposals.

Councillors, too were in favour, voting unanimously to approve them.

Cllr Martin Carter (Lab, Northborough & Lynch Hill Valley) said that, after 20 years of this site being strangely classed as ‘temporary’, he welcomed the shift to permanent status.

It would provide some stability, ending this site’s status as a place for which the council is ‘never quite sure what's coming next’, he said.

View documents with reference P/12244/012 on Slough council’s online planning portal.