Residents in a Warwickshire village are pushing back against proposals to expand a nearby business park, warning the development could harm local wildlife.
People living in Dunchurch say plans for further warehouses at Symmetry Park are already creating intrusive light pollution over Cawston Spinney, an ancient woodland on the village’s edge. They argue the glow from the existing units is altering the area’s natural environment.
Developer Tritax Big Box insists the lighting has been designed to meet only the minimum levels required to ensure the safety of workers. “As a responsible and highly experienced developer, we ensure every scheme complies fully with its planning consent,” a spokesperson said. “Throughout the design process, we work to balance operational safety with the need to minimise any impact on the local environment.”
Jo Phillips, chair of the community group Action for Dunchurch, said she recognised the need for new housing and jobs, but questioned the cost to wildlife.
“Cawston Spinney is one of the village’s greatest assets,” she said. “We’re already facing 5,000 new houses around Dunchurch and the woodland. To add even more warehouses — 111 acres of sheds and HGV parking — is completely unacceptable.”
Phillips described “severe skyglow” from the site, claiming the visual disturbance interferes with bats’ navigation and disrupts the circadian rhythms of many species. The woodland, she added, is “the most beautiful space… it’s what drew people to this rural village.”
Karl Curtis from Warwickshire Wildlife Trust noted that the county has only 7% woodland cover, compared with a national average of 10%. Cawston Spinney, he said, supports woodpeckers, badgers, hedgehogs and the rare spotted flycatcher.
The warehouse plans, he warned, pose “a real concern”, disturbing nesting birds and bats hunting for food. “If someone shone a floodlight into your bedroom window, your sleep would suffer,” he said. “Nature needs people to speak up — the fight can’t be left to organisations alone.”
Rugby Borough Council said it could not comment while the planning application was still under consideration. Public consultation on the proposals closes on 30 November.
