A new bid to flatten a historic Coalville fire station and replace it with a care home has been launched. Officials blocked a similar plan last year over fears the scheme was “unacceptable” and “obtrusive”, with the latest proposal already gaining opposition.
The plan, put forward by S. Rigby on behalf of Exemplar Healthcare, would see several vacant business units on Coalville’s Ashby Road demolished to make way for a 36-bed care home for those with neuro disabilities and other conditions including dementia and autism. One of the units is the former National Coal Board Mines Rescue Fire Station which served all Leicestershire coal mines in the 1960s and was most recently a Tiles 4 Less supplies store.
Exemplar, which runs a number of care homes, says there is “high demand” for care in Coalville and that demolishing the buildings would “maximise” the area. However, Stuart Warburton, chairman of the Snibston Heritage Trust, said the importance of the former fire station “cannot be overstressed”, claiming its loss would have a “detrimental” impact on the area’s history.
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If approved, Exemplar’s bid would see all the buildings flattened to make way for two linked blocks, the smaller of which will be for administrative purposes, while the larger building will hold 36 bedrooms for care home patients. The site would also come with 30 car parking spaces, two disabled bays and eight cycle bays.
Exemplar says its proposal would “bring a new use” to the land and make it “more appealing”, but the Snibston Heritage Trust is deeply worried. Mr Warburton claimed “no attempt” had been made to include the NCB fire station in the plan and that the “modest” and “unassuming” building was a “rare survivor” of the early era of coal nationalisation and should be retained.
The location of the care home proposal has also sparked fears as it is directly opposite the Snibston Colliery Park and its listed pitheads. Exemplar’s plan is similar in scale to proposals they submitted last year, but officials on North West Leicestershire District Council (NWLDC) rejected them on a number of grounds, including access issues off Ashby Road linked with the park. Councillors also hit out at the “unacceptable” visual impact of the project on the pitheads.
Access in the new plan is unchanged, sparking more fears about increased traffic and congestion. Mr Warburton claimed this would lead to “inevitable” issues, saying congestion issues are already “exacerbated” in the area due to traffic calming provisions. He said the care home’s creation would lead to “congestion, road safety issues and motorist frustration”.
Exemplar says their plan provides “level access” and that vehicles will be able to safely enter and exit the site. The care home provider also said its proposal boasted a number of benefits, including a jobs boost in the area. NWLDC’s planning committee will decide on the plans at a later date.
