Officers back up to 75,000 sq m of warehouse and industrial units on the former Didcot A site, without the 400 homes approved in 2019. Sutton Courtenay objects.
Update, 27 September 2026: the committee approved this application on 16 September. A traffic condition keeps construction and site traffic on the main trunk roads and out of Sutton Courtenay. The decision in full.
Plans for up to 75,000 square metres of warehouse and industrial units on the former Didcot A power station site go to the Vale’s planning committee on Wednesday 16 September. Officers recommend approval.
The site, now called Signia Park, is about three miles south of Abingdon. It sits between Milton Park and the western edge of Didcot. The application, P25/V1947/O, is from BGO Europe IV Logistics UK Didcot Propco Ltd.
It reaches committee because Sutton Courtenay Parish Council objects. The village lies just north of the site, beyond Didcot B power station.
What is proposed
The officer report, by case officer Stuart Walker, describes a two-part application on about 22 hectares. Most of the land is in the Vale, with a small part in South Oxfordshire, which has its own reference, P25/S2937/O.
The application includes:
- full permission for a link road across the site, a section of the HIF1 road scheme the Secretary of State consented in December 2024
- a realigned Purchas Road and a new access from the Milton Road roundabout on the A4130
- outline permission for up to 75,000 square metres of industrial, general industrial and storage and distribution space (classes E(g)(iii), B2 and B8)
- four development zones, with buildings up to 25 metres high
- land kept free for the Didcot Science Bridge
The council’s economic development team, supporting the scheme, expects the units to be “primarily in the logistics sector”.
What happened to the 400 homes
This is not the first plan for the site. In February 2019, both councils granted outline permission for a much wider mix. It included:
- up to 400 homes
- 110,000 square metres of industrial and warehouse units and 25,000 square metres of business units
- 13,000 square metres of shops, including a 1,500 square metre food store
- a 150-bed hotel
- a 500 square metre pub or restaurant
None of the homes, shops or hotel is in the new application. The officers’ explanation is short. The application, they write, “indicates that the market is dictating the demand of uses and that residential use from the previous permission is no longer pursued.”
They add that the site’s local plan allocation says “particularly employment”, and that the mix “will need to reflect demand”.
Why Sutton Courtenay objects
The parish council’s latest response, to amended plans in May 2026, keeps its objection until it sees a construction plan written for this site. It calls the submitted one “generic”.
Its main concern is construction traffic. It wants lorries kept off Harwell Road, Sutton Courtenay Lane and Sutton Courtenay Road. It also points to recent history. In summer 2025, the parish council says, piling noise from works north-west of the old power station was bad enough that the Vale’s environmental health team investigated. The team concluded the construction method had to change.
Earlier responses went further. The parish council called the size of the proposed warehouses “daunting”. It said losing the 400 homes was “disappointing”. It also asked for a legal agreement to stop Harwell Road becoming a rat run, with signs, chicanes and a single lane.
Other responses in the report:
- Didcot Town Council now has no objection. It first objected over sewage capacity, and raised no objection to the May 2026 amendments.
- Oxfordshire County Council highways has no objection, subject to the link roads being delivered first.
- One resident objected to each version of the plans. Nobody wrote in support.
- A neighbouring business asked that its only access, via Purchas Road, stays open during construction.
Why officers back it
The site is allocated for redevelopment in the Vale’s Local Plan 2031, and existing permissions already establish commercial use there. On traffic, the county council says the scheme would mean a “significant net reduction” in vehicle movements compared with what is already permitted.
The site is in an Enterprise Zone. The economic development team says all business rates growth on it is kept locally until 2041. It also reports that the applicant expects up to 1,200 full-time jobs, and an average of 300 full-time equivalent roles during a 16-month build.
Officers accept the buildings will be visible. They say the visual harm is “not considered adverse” beside Didcot B and existing large commercial buildings, and is outweighed by “significant economic benefits”.
What the developer would have to do
The recommendation is to let the Director of Planning grant permission, in consultation with the committee chair, once a legal agreement is signed. It comes with 28 conditions. They include:
- a construction environmental management plan
- a community employment plan
- public art
- no open storage outside the buildings
- no occupation until the Power Station roundabout works are finished
The county council wants the link road open before any unit is occupied. It also wants the realigned Purchas Road finished by the end of 2026, because it is an abnormal load route to the National Grid site. One proposed unit would sit on the Science Bridge construction compound, so nothing can be built there until the bridge is open.
| For | Amount | Paid |
|---|---|---|
| Two bus shelters and real-time displays on Milton Road | £45,662 | On first occupation |
| Travel plan monitoring, five years | £16,735 | On first occupation |
| Biodiversity net gain monitoring, 30 years | £15,759.53 | On commencement |
| Vale monitoring of the agreement | £1,681 | On signing |
The site is not liable for the Community Infrastructure Levy. The developer would also hand over land for HIF1 haul roads and compounds, and for a cycle link.
What it means for you
If you live in Sutton Courtenay, the construction plan is the part to watch. The parish council’s traffic and piling concerns rest on what that plan says, and approval would make it a condition to be agreed later.
If you drive between Abingdon and Didcot, the link road matters more than the units. It is part of the HIF1 route that will join the Didcot Science Bridge to the new Thames crossing at Culham. The county council is already cutting speed limits on the A415 for that work, as we reported in our Clifton Hampden story.
The meeting is at 7pm on Wednesday 16 September in Meeting Room 1, Abbey House, Abingdon. To speak, register with PlanningBusinessEnquiries@southandvale.gov.uk by noon on Tuesday 15 September. You can only speak if you already commented on the application. Each category of speaker gets three minutes in total, according to the council’s Planning Committee page.
The same meeting decides 14 homes at The Green in Drayton. For other live applications, see our Abingdon planning page.
Sources
- Vale of White Horse Planning Committee, 16 September 2026: agenda, and the officer report on P25/V1947/O, for the proposal, the consultee responses, the planning history, the conditions and the legal agreement payments.
- Vale of White Horse: The Planning Committee, for the rules on speaking.
All checked 11 September 2026.
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