National Science and Conservation Centre secures green light

Proposals for the new National Science and Conservation Centre (NSCC) at a zoological park in Leicestershire, which will support the study of orangutans as well as more than 100 other endangered species, have moved forward.Twycross Zoo East Midland Zoological Society Ltd sought planning permission for a higher education campus facility of three attached buildings comprising a 216-seat lecture theatre, an education block and a residential block that includes ancillary social space.In support of the residential block, there are also six lodges that would provide additional accommodation for researchers from around the world who are based at the Zoo on a longer term basis.To enable the NSCC to come forward, the existing orangutan enclosure will be relocated within the Zoo to the application site and replaced with a three-storey Animal Habitat and Visitor Centre.In addition to the habitat building, the scheme incorporates an elevated boardwalk, a bird aviary, three additional animal habitats, an outdoor classroom over Animal House 03, two further outdoor classrooms in the gardens of the NSCC, an Indonesian ‘village’ made up of themed shelters and viewing huts, and a retail/ VR structure.It is expected that the development will create 44 full-time permanent jobs.The NSCC is the next stage of the Zoo’s £55m strategic investment masterplan and comprises the development of the Twycross Life Sciences Park, which will be a ‘STEM Centre of Excellence’.Hinckley & Bosworth Borough Council’s planning committee: “Overall, it is considered that the significant economic and social benefits of supporting the expansion of this established major tourism facility and its development of a new educational community facility significantly and demonstrably outweighs the potential environmental harm to the character of the countryside and the Landscape Sensitivity Area.”In light of the above, it is recommended that planning permission be granted, subject to the imposition of appropriate conditions.”Members voted in line with the recommendation to approve the scheme.