New Hinkley Point C campus planned near new M5 services

The construction workforce at the new nuclear power station is expected to reach its peak over the next 18 months, with up to 15,000 people expected to be working on the build between 2026 and 2028. NNB Generation Company (HPC) Ltd. secured planning permission in early-July to create additional parking spaces[1] near Bridgwater and Albion[2] Rugby Football Club, which is within walking distance of one of the Hinkley park and ride facilities. The same company has now teased plans to create a huge new campus not far from junction 24 of the M5 - within walking distance of the services which Welcome Break intends to deliver[3].

EDF Energy currently has two bespoke campuses for Hinkley Point C - the Sedgemoor Campus on the A39 Bath Road, and the Hinkley Campus adjacent to the power station. Large number of employees are also currently housed in various campsites or caravan parks, such as the Quantock Lakes facility near Nether Stowey and the Moorhouse Campsite in Holford. The planned new campus lies at the eastern end of the private road Notaro Way, south of the Buttercup Nursery School and the Lakeview Holiday Cottages already in place.

The site is clearly visible from the Bridgwater and Taunton Canal towpath, which skirts close to the site near the Huntworth Lane bridge. The new campus will comprise two- and three-storey modular accommodation blocks (similar to what has been provided on the Bath Road campus in the town), which will provide around 1,000 bed spaces. Communal welfare and recreational facilities will be laid on within the site, including a restaurant, kitchen, bar, shop, gym and multi-use games area - with offices and more formal staff facilities also being provided.

The site will have a dedicated bus pick-up and drop-off area near the junction with Notaro Way, enabling residents to use the existing park and ride services rather than having to walk over the M5 or along the canal to the Huntworth Business Park facility. The site will include 700 car parking spaces, 200 cycle parking spaces and 15 spaces for motorcycles, and is expected to be operational for a maximum of five years, after which the land will be restored to its original condition. Stuart Houlet of PCL Planning (representing the applicant) said: "The proposed development is not a major development of more than local importance, nor will it have unusually complex and potentially hazardous environmental effects.

"We do not consider that the proposed development is of a scale or character that would be likely to have significant effects on the environment."

Somerset Council is expected to make a ruling on the screening request by the late-summer, with more detailed proposals due to come forward by Christmas if approval is granted.

The council is also expected to rule on Welcome Break's detailed plans for the new junction 24 services by the end of the summer.

References

1. ^ secured planning permission in early-July to create additional parking spaces (www.bridgwatermercury.co.uk)
2. ^ Albion (www.bridgwatermercury.co.uk)
3. ^ the services which Welcome Break intends to deliver (www.bridgwatermercury.co.uk)