Green light for Longleat’s hotel and water park plans

Proposals for a new hotel, water park and conference facility at the Longleat estate have been given the go ahead by Wiltshire Council.Insider revealed in February that Longleat Enterprises, the commercial arm of the 465-year-old estate, had lodged the plans which include a 240-bedroom hotel.A water park will be developed, together with conferencing facilities as part of the hotel, able to cater for up to 200 delegates. Multi-purpose entertaining and ancillary buildings would also be created.The plans are aimed at enabling families to extend their stay at the park. It has been estimated that the new facilities will create about 300 full-time equivalent jobs, and support more indirectly.Wiltshire Council voted to grant consent for the scheme at a meeting of its strategic planning committee last week (19 July), in line with the report from the planning officer.Planning permission has been granted subject to conditions, including the approval of a reserved matters application, submission of an operational noise management plan and that no ‘special events’ are held at the site.Longleat Enterprises has committed to spending £3m per year over a ten-year period to support the development of the park.