From The Saxongate Residents Group.
Cambridgeshire County Council has confirmed that it has been advised Johnsons intends to appeal the refusal of planning application CCC/24/091/VAR.
If an appeal is lodged, it will go to the Planning Inspectorate. Previous representations will be forwarded to the Inspector and there may also be an opportunity for further comments. We will post the details and any deadline once confirmed.
There has been no Johnsons liaison meeting since November 2025, despite the previous meeting agreeing to continue on a six-monthly basis. Saxongate has had no response from the Town or District councillors we contacted about this. After Saxongate pursued the matter with CCC, a meeting has now been arranged for 23 September.
Our review of the Environment Agency’s published compliance reports since that last meeting records seven permit non-compliances at the Johnsons operation, including reporting, IBA storage, flooding, water management and dust suppression.
The most recent published report followed a site visit on 7 April. It set a 4 May deadline for corrective action on dust suppression, while earlier reports left the management system review and clearance of remaining standing water outstanding, the latter with a 1 June deadline. No further compliance report has been published since, so residents cannot tell from the published record whether those actions were completed. This is exactly the sort of information the liaison meetings should be providing.
On a positive note, resurfacing the access road has significantly improved the dust and debris problems experienced by residents closest to the site. Some traffic calming also appears to have been reinstated, which is welcome.
Residents cannot attend the liaison meeting directly, so Saxongate has asked Whittlesey Town Council representatives to raise questions including:
• what traffic calming has been reinstated and whether vehicle speeds are being monitored
• progress on a possible lockable barrier to prevent movements outside operating hours
• how HGV movements across the wider site are recorded and attributed following movements reported by residents in June
• the current status of the Environment Agency permit application and wider intentions for the site
• what action followed the EA recording grey water being used to damp down the access road. The EA said this increased the risk of contaminated run-off entering the Saxon Pit lagoon and subsequently King’s Dyke
• recent changes to the wedge pits and water capture tanks following the flooding and removal of IBA and contaminated water earlier this year
We have also asked the Council to look at a possible Traffic Regulation Order restricting HGVs turning right onto the A605 and the continuing growth of vehicle and HGV trailer storage at Victory Pit.
These are operational issues affecting residents now and should continue to be dealt with irrespective of any planning appeal.
If you see HGV movements outside normal working hours, please note the date, time, operator name if visible and direction of travel and let us know.
We have asked the Council representatives attending the meeting to raise these questions and report the answers back afterwards. We will update residents when that information is received.
Saxongate Residents Group.
