St Modwen’s plan for Newton-le-Willows gets green light

PLANNING permission has been granted from the next phase of development at Newton-le Willows, near St Helens which will see the relocation of sports facilities.

They will move from the old Vulcan Works site to a new purpose-built facility nearby.

The plans by regeneration specialist St Modwen will also facilitate the demolition of the old sports facilities in order for a new 18,000sq ft Aldi food store to be built.

The food retailer has committed to a 20-year lease at the site and with work scheduled to start on site in October next year, the store could be open by Spring 2017.

Meanwhile, new sports pavilion buildings and facilities will be built, including a bowling green and sports pitches.

St Modwen agreed to the delivery of new premises for the clubs as part of its initial planning consent for the area in 2004.

This latest planning consent follows extensive work on the site, including the delivery of new homes at Wargrave Road, of which 175 have now sold, a children’s play area, a history trail and public green space.

Paul Batho, Projects Director at St Modwen, said: “This development marks the beginning of the next phase of work at the old Vulcan Works site.

“The sports clubs have been an integral part of this community for a long time and it has always been part of our commitment to the area to deliver new premises for these clubs and to ensure that they have the facilities to continue to thrive and support the community.

“The new facilities will give these historic clubs a new lease of life and encourage new members.

“Aldi’s commitment to the site signals its belief in this up and coming area and will bring its popular range of goods to Newton-Le-Willows for the benefit of new and existing residents alike.”

A spokesperson from Aldi said, “A large number of much-needed jobs will be created thanks to the approval, for which we will begin to recruit once construction is underway.

“We’re confident that increasing our offering to this location will reduce the need for residents to travel further afield to complete their food shopping and help to retain spending in the Newton-le-Willows which we believe will benefit existing local businesses.”