THERE could be another twist and turn in the saga of the supermarket at Rocks Green on the outskirts of Ludlow.

Members of Shropshire Council’s southern area planning committee broke the hearts of the ‘Love Ludlow’ group when they approved the revised scheme.

But this may not be the end of the story.

Andy Boddington, member of Shropshire Council for Ludlow North and a member of the planning committee, voted against the scheme.

But he was on the wrong side of the vote that went five to four in favour of the supermarket and petrol station development.

However, he has revealed that all hope is not lost for campaigners against the development that include the ‘Love Ludlow’ campaign and the town’s Chamber of Commerce.

“The scheme can’t yet be approved,” said Andy Boddington.

“There are a few more steps take, including endorsement from the secretary of state for communities.”

Because the supermarket and petrol station is not in line with the local plan that does not allocate the site for retail development it will need the approval from Central Government of Communities Secretary Sajid Javid.

However, Andy Boddington is warning opponents of the scheme not to raise their hopes.

“The secretary of state for communities, may simply sign off the planning committee’s decision,” added Andy Boddington.

“Alternatively, he may decide to call the decision in and hold a planning inquiry before deciding.

“This is known as a “call in”. It is up to the secretary of state whether to call an application in.

“If an inquiry is held, a planning inspector will hear the evidence in public and make a recommendation to the secretary of state. Ministers have the right to take a different opinion to the planning inspectorate and frequently do.

“If Sajid Javid approves the application, it will be subject to a reserved matters application. This will set out the details of the scheme.

“Planning officers told the committee that they thought the proposed layout unsuitable. The revised plans “continue to provide a harsh high barrier to the properties on Rocks Green Crescent and the loss of the majority of the landscaping on the A49 and A4117.

“However, officers remain of the opinion that a different layout could be achieved which moves the store and service yard further from the existing dwellings and also retains the existing landscaping along the A49.”

“This will be resolved in discussions between Shropshire Council planners and Blackfriars Property Group. The details will then go back to the South Planning Committee for final approval.”

In the event of the application being rejected by the Communities Secretary the only option for the developer Blackfriars would be to challenge the decision in the High Court through a judicial review.

This would be concerned with whether the correct processes had been followed and not the merits of the decision.

Call in requests should go to the National Planning Casework Unit as soon as possible. NPCU, 5 St Philips Place, Colmore Row, Birmingham B3 2PW. 0303 444 8050. npcu@communities.gsi.gov.uk.

"It was a very disappointing outcome, some Committee members had clearly changed their minds," said Tish Dockerty of the Love Ludlow campaign.

"There was little thought for the town centre businesses that will suffer.

"The application has been in the pipeline for many years without attracting an actual named supermarket so it will be interesting to see what will happen next as there is very little expansion in this sector at the moment.

"The Love Ludlow Campaign continues to fight the plans and has made a request to Phillip Dunne to ‘call in’ the application. This is where ministers get to reconsider the plans and make a recommendation to the Secretary of State which could go either way."