Jaguar Land Rover’s (www.jaguarlandrover.com) decision to build a new logistics operation in Solihull were approved recently, despite objections being raised regarding the development's potential impact on green-belt land.

The car-manufacturing group announced in December that it wanted to acquire land near Solihull Football Club on Damson Parkway for a 988,000ft² Logistics Operations Centre with 42,000ft² of ancillary office space and a 1,150-space car park.

More than 100 objections were submitted to the authority, along with a petition containing 74 signatures. While Solihull planning officers said they recognised that the scheme represented “inappropriate development” on green-belt land, they added that “very special circumstances” had been demonstrated.

In a statement, they said: “The scheme will enable the storage of parts as close as possible to the point of use, enabling JLR to use a more efficient and effective logistics network, reducing the business’s miles on the UK road network and contributing to ensuring JLR’s future competitiveness with other manufacturers around the world.”