Charlton House, is the global headquarters of Spirax-Sarco Engineering plc, a FTSE 100 company and is one of Cheltenham’s largest employers. It has occupied the site since the 1940s.

Charlton House is a complex site, involving a Grade II listed building and has been extended in the latter half of the 20 Century.

Spirax-Sarco were faced with a dilemma, the modern office extension was reaching the end of its operational life, it was poorly configured and ill-suited to modern working practices.

Given the need for change, the company appointed McLoughlin Planning and Roberts Limbrick Architects along with a multi-disciplinary consultant team to advise on options for redevelopment, to provide a modern, highly energy efficient work-space, fit for the 21 Century.

Working in partnership with Roberts Limbrick Architects we took the company through the various options available in terms of demolition and replacement structures. Refurbishment was out of the question. The fundamental challenge was to balance the need for a modern office space against the need to respect the character and setting of Charlton House. This demanded a creative and bold confident approach.

At an early stage of the project, the company sought to embody its environmental commitments into the project and working with the team, decided on a strategy which would deliver the County’s first ever BREEAM (Building Research Establishment’s Environmental Assessment Method) ‘Outstanding’ building, which is a very high bar in terms of measuring its environmental performance. Less than top 1% of new non-domestic buildings in the UK are within the Outstanding category so this is a significant achievement. ‘Outstanding’ building.

The new extension contains open-plan office space, break-out areas, an auditorium, a gym and changing facilities. Securing the renovation of the company’s global headquarters will help to consolidate their position in Cheltenham and will secure existing and attract new high-skilled jobs in the town for years to come.

McLoughlin Planning explained and guided Spirax-Sarco through the planning process, submitting the planning and listed building applications for the redevelopment. We were able to demonstrate that the bold, superior architectural design of the replacement extension clearly outweighed the minor harm that would be caused to the historic fabric of the listed building.

As part of the process, we equally advised the company on concerns raised from local residents which focused on the height of the new five-storey extension and the disturbance that would be caused during the demolition and construction phases of the development. Again, we were able to demonstrate to the Council that the development would not be detrimental to neighbouring residents and the applications were approved by the Council’s Planning Committee only four months after submission.

This project enabled us to help build a new community of 198 much-needed new homes. We were brought in to secure outline permission for the landowners and retained by the developer to see the project through reserved matters.

We helped design a landscape-led development with a strong sense of place, including a tree-lined avenue and hedges which highlight the beautiful Cotswolds backdrop. A new park was created too, which all contributed to maintaining the legacy for a conscientious landowner.

We overcame many difficulties, not least ensuring that the requirements of an EIA-based application were met. We balanced the needs and desires of the council, landowners and developers, showing that we can solve challenges by bringing people together and building strong relationships. Our project management skills were also vital in seeing the proposals through to submission and discharging conditions.

McLoughlin Planning was appointed by Kier Construction to provide planning consultancy advice as part of a multi-disciplinary team.

McLoughlin Planning was appointed by Kier Construction to provide planning consultancy advice as part of a multi-disciplinary team to deliver Full Planning Permission for a new 2 Form Entry Primary School and nursery in the Quedgeley area of Gloucester.

The application was complex and contentious, as it involved the loss of an area of undeveloped land in the City, which was used by local residents for informal recreation, notwithstanding the fact that it was allocated for educational purposes and not protected for open space. This eventually saw the application being successfully determined at Appeal.

Through the Appeal process, we were able to provide a robust planning case, highlighting the development plan context for the site and the compelling guidance provided by Government regarding the provision of new schools. In addition, we were also able to draw on the Council’s own evidence regarding the availability of open space in the area to demonstrate to the Inspector that there was a surplus of the type of open space in the area, thus allowing him to better balance the competing needs of the Case.

We also provided extensive support in negotiating the Statement of Common Ground, which resulted in a number of Reasons for Refusal being dropped by the Council, thus ensuring that Inquiry time was minimised.

This was an ultimate grand design to match even the most ambitious dream home project. Working with architect, Richard Parr, we were involved from start to finish of this project nestled in a 150-acre farm in the spectacular Oxfordshire countryside.

The existing Cotswolds farmhouse cottage needed significant upscaling to meet our client’s needs for more space alongside first rate equestrian facilities. The sensitivity of the site, which lies near Chipping Norton, meant we were required to work hard with the project team and planning authority to meet the needs of our family client by making the case for an innovative development.

The result is a bespoke solution to delivering a beautiful 20,000 sq ft home marrying modern construction and traditional craftsmanship.

McLoughlin Planning has been the Planning Consultant for Gloucestershire Airport for several years. As part of this, it has been involved in securing the necessary Consent for Skyborne’s operations allowing them to establish a Commercial Flight Training School at Gloucestershire Airport to meet the global demand for new Commercial Pilots.

The challenges faced by this project were:

• It was necessary to demonstrate that the use of a hangar as a Flight Training School fell within the definition of aviation-related development in the Town & Country Planning General Permitted Development (Order 2015).
• The Flight Training School was to be supported by an accommodation block for students.

The site is situated within the Green Belt where there are stringent planning controls on new development. As part of the company’s activities working on behalf of the Airport in terms of looking after its wider property portfolio, we were able to engineer a suitably positively planning policy context to allow Skyborne’s proposals to come forward as part of non-operational but aviation-related development.