Stefan Pidluznyj, Local Democracy Reporter

Plans for an iconic Lancaster Bomber sculpture welcoming visitors to and from Lincolnshire is set to be given the green light by councillors next week.

North Kesteven District Council’s Planning Sub-Committee has been given a recommendation to approve proposals for the full-size art installation on land at Brills Farm just off the A46 in Norton Disney.

The vision for Lincolnshire’s answer to the Angel of the North was revealed in November 2017, with The Bomber County Gateway Trust hoping to bring the project to fruition this year – the 100th anniversary of the RAF.

Over 30,000 drivers a day would pass the monument to Bomber Command if it is given planning permission.

The 26 metre long sculpture would be mounted on a steel frame to give the impression that it is in flight.

No car park would be created as the installation is not intended to be a formal visitor attraction.

However, guided tours for school children or other people interested are planned for the future.

The local area is home to a number of crash sites and one of the owners of Brills Farm has a direct descendant who was pivotal in establishing the RAF.

Sophie White, co-owner of the application site, is the great-great-granddaughter of Frank Hedges Butler who formed the Aero Club in 1901 with Charles Rolls of Rolls Royce fame.

The Aero Club became the Royal Aero Club in 1910, which led to the formation of the Royal Flying Corps in 1912, which in turn became the Royal Air Force in April 1918.

Neighbours have been almost universally supportive of the sculpture, with 57 writing to the council to back the plans.

Residents have said that the artwork would be “a fitting memorial” at the gateway of Bomber County to those young men and women who lost their lives in the RAF.

Other people said that it bring a tourism boost to the county and would “evoke a feeling of coming home”.

However, one Bassingham resident was less enthusiastic, claiming that Lincolnshire has so much more to offer than constant reminiscing about its World War Two history and airfields.

Ken Sadler from the trust previously said: “The Lancaster represents Lincolnshire’s inextricable link to military aviation and the readiness of Lincolnshire people to identify with, and be quite possessive of, this heritage.”

Members of North Kesteven District Council’s Planning Sub-Committee will decide on the proposal at a meeting in Sleaford on Tuesday, April 24.

This application comes in the same month as the opening ceremony for the long-awaited International Bomber Command Centre on Canwick Hill.

The eight year project consists of a £10 million visitor information centre, spire, memorial and walls containing the names of 57,861 young men and women killed in World War Two in service of Bomber Command.

East Lindsey District Council is set to buy a site used by travelling showpeople in Mablethorpe.

Members of the council’s executive will agree the purchase of land on Seaholme Road from Anglian Water at a meeting in Manby on Wednesday, April 18.

This section of the meeting will be held behind closed doors with members of the press and public excluded due to confidential information.

However, council papers indicate that the value of the transaction will be £85,000 and the deal will need to be completed by the end of August this year.

The land was transferred to Anglian Water in the 1970s.

East Lindsey has operated a seasonal site for showpeople on Seaholme Road for a long period of time.

The eight plots accommodates the showpeople who work on the coastal amusements in the summer months.

Most come for the summer and then leave, but one family of showpeople currently live on the site permanently.

The council has an obligation to provide sites for gypsies, travellers and showpeople through its local plan.

By purchasing the site, the council hopes to secure it for the future use of showpeople living and working in the district.

A report to executive councillors has identified risks if the site is sold to people outside of the council’s control.

Report author Anne Shorland, Planning Policy and Research Service Manager at East Lindsey District Council, said: “If the site is sold to showpeople the risk is that it could be bought for use by one family. They could evict everyone else off the site.

“There would be no breach of planning control if this occurred, but the council would then have to find a site to accommodate the seven lost plots and it would have to be in the area of Mablethorpe because the present occupants all work in one of the amusements in the town in the summer.

“The issue would be exacerbated if one of those evicted was the family who reside on the site permanently.

“The council would then have to find a plot which could house the family on a permanent basis – this would actually be impossible in Mablethorpe because of flood risk.”