Intensive chicken farm up for approval near Leadenham

Plans for a £6 million 300,000 chicken poultry farm in Leadenham are set for approval later this month, despite almost 300 objections to the plans.

North Kesteven District Council’s planning committee on April 26 will be asked to vote in favour of giving the go ahead to Richard Williams’ application for six poultry houses for broiler chicken production, along with associated infrastructure at Leadenham Poultry Farm on Sleaford Road.

The plans will include feed rooms and bins, water tanks, generators, a dead bird shed and staff facilities.

The applicant said the “modern and efficient” unit will “fulfil a modern demand for cheap and environmentally efficiently produced food” and would contribute to national food security.

Other benefits include include increased employment opportunities, according to the applicants.

The council has received 278 representations objecting to the plans, including concerns around visual and residential amenity such as odour, parking and highways impacts, and animal welfare.

Several residents have sent a template letter which concludes: “This farm, due to its highly intensive nature, is dependent on large inputs of human-edible food, energy and water, and as such is highly unsustainable.

“The local impact on landscape, water and soil health, biodiversity loss and impacts on human health from ammonia emissions.

“Countless reports show the detrimental impacts of intensive farming on a whole range of measures including human health, rural livelihoods, and the environment, as well as the obvious impact on animal welfare.

“This planning proposal needs to be rejected on all the above grounds.

How the poultry farm could be laid out.

Leadenham Parish Council, along with Brant Broughton and Stragglethorpe Parish Council, has also objected to the plans.

However, in a report to the committee, council officers said the principle of development was acceptable and represented appropriate development in a countryside location”.

“Whilst there have been numerous objections regarding the impact of odour on residential amenity and impact on local tourism sites, as well as a number of queries regarding the validity of the conclusions contained within the submitted reports and modelling, the supporting submissions have been based on national guidance,” it said.

It later added: “LCC Highways have raised no objections on highway safety grounds.”