Dear Sophie,

Thank you for consulting me on this application. Although the application form states that the proposal is exempt from Biodiversity Net Gain due to a lack of vegetated habitat the BNG report prepared by Armstrong Ecology dated November 2025 rightly concludes that BNG does apply based on the habitats present pre-site clearance/disturbance.

An appropriate metric calculation has identified an existing base-line of 4.15 habitat units. On the basis of the current proposal this will result in a net loss of 51.31%. This does not meet the mandatory requirement of a 10% net gain and the trading rules are not satisfied. This will need to be resolved to satisfy the mandatory 10% net gain pre-commencement BNG condition. See informative below.

Informative:

Important: the statutory Biodiversity Net Gain objective of 10% applies to this planning permission and development cannot commence until a Biodiversity Gain Plan has been submitted (as a condition compliance application) to and approved by Ashfield District Council.

The effect of paragraph 13 of Schedule 7A to the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 is that planning permission granted for the development of land in England is deemed to have been granted subject to the condition “(the biodiversity gain condition”) that development may not begin unless:

(a) a Biodiversity Gain Plan has been submitted to the planning authority, and

(b) the planning authority has approved the plan.

Beverley Rhodes BSc MCIEEM

Ashfield Ecologist

From: planning.admin@ashfield.gov.uk <planning.admin@ashfield.gov.uk>
Sent: 19 November 2025 10:04
To: Beverley.Rhodes <Beverley.Rhodes@ashfield.gov.uk>; AssureEmail <AssureEmail@ashfield.gov.uk>
Subject: V/2025/0497
Importance: High