Councillors approved 24 showpeople's plots at Long Copse Farm, Enborne, by 6 votes to 1, capped at 48 caravans, and an 87-bed care home on Kiln Road, Newbury.

A site for up to 24 travelling showpeople’s plots at Long Copse Farm, Enborne, has planning permission. West Berkshire councillors approved it on Wednesday 21 October, despite 90 objections.

The same committee approved a three-storey, 87-bed care home at 54A Kiln Road, Newbury, that evening. Both followed the officers’ recommendation.

They were among the last cases decided by the Western Area Planning Committee. From 31 October a single council-wide Planning Committee replaces it, under new rules we set out last week.

The votes below are from the council’s own webcasts of the morning and evening meetings. Minutes have not yet been published.

Enborne: approved by 6 votes to 1

Enborne is a parish about two miles west of Newbury town centre.

The application, 23/02596/FULMAJ, was approved by six votes to one, with one abstention. The site is allocated for 24 showpeople’s plots in the Local Plan Review adopted in June 2025.

The officer report records 90 objections and no letters of support. Enborne Parish Council objected and spoke at the meeting, as did Hamstead Marshall Parish Council. The report says Enborne Parish Council’s High Court challenge to the allocation was refused permission in January 2026.

The main worry raised was how many people would live on each plot. Councillors added two conditions to those officers proposed:

  • no more than 48 caravans on the site in total
  • no more than one static caravan on each plot

Officers told the committee that a legal agreement would tie occupation of the site to the applicant’s circus business or a future owner of the site as a showpeople’s yard. They said the 15-metre landscape buffer beside the ancient woodland of Long Copse is measured from the edge of the site, and a detailed planting scheme must be approved.

Councillors also asked officers to check with the NHS Integrated Care Board and the education authority whether either wants a contribution towards health or school places. The ICB had not been consulted, officers said. If neither asks, the permission goes ahead without one.

Kiln Road: approved by 5 votes to 1

The Kiln Road scheme, 26/00042/FULMAJ, replaces former offices with an 87-bed care home. It was approved by five votes to one, with three abstentions, subject to a section 106 agreement.

The report records 32 objections and no support. Newbury Town Council objected too, citing overdevelopment, amenity, the soakaways and the River Lambourn.

At the meeting:

  • the highways officer said the site will have 40 parking spaces, in line with the council’s survey of other Newbury care homes, of just under half a space per bedroom
  • officers gave the gap to the nearest homes on Northwood Drive as at least 21 metres at ground floor and 27 metres above
  • several councillors called the building too tall and an overdevelopment, but said they could not find a planning reason to refuse that would survive an appeal
  • the committee added a condition on carrying out and maintaining the landscaping, and widened the lighting condition to protect neighbours as well as wildlife

What it means for you

If you live near Long Copse Farm: the permission limits the site to 48 caravans and one static caravan per plot. If you think either limit is being broken later, report it to the council’s planning enforcement team.

If you live on Kiln Road or Northwood Drive: construction cannot start until the conditions are met, including a landscaping scheme. The decision notice, with every condition, will appear on the council’s planning register once the section 106 agreement is signed.

Sources