HMRC’s Inland Border Facility in North Wales has achieved planning permission.

The new facility, which is located at Holyhead in North Wales, is being developed on a sustainable brownfield site located within the Anglesey Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB) and UNESCO Global Geopark (GEOMON).

Due to the scale and nature of the site, significant environmental assessment works have been required to develop the scheme taking into account the sensitivities of the location.

Knights has acted as planning consultant on the project providing advice on site selection, environmental issues and technical assessments ensuring that the planning application was successful.

The project will deliver a physical checkpoint for the inspection of goods being imported from, and exported to, the EU.  It provides additional capacity for existing ports. It will provide facilities for goods entering and exiting the UK to complete their customs responsibilities, including the ability to start and end transit movements to and from the UK.

The Inland Border Facility will operate seven days a week, 24 hours a day, it will provide staff welfare facilities and sanitation facilities for drivers.

This major project will bring significant investment to the local area, and will create jobs for local people.

Louise Thorne, Partner, Knights commented: “We are pleased to have worked collaboratively with HMRC, Gleeds and the wider project team to ensure that the planning application was successful.  This was a complex project due to the sensitive elements of the site which required wide ranging community and stakeholder consultation and detailed negotiation of the planning conditions.  We are continuing to work with HMRC, Gleeds and the contractor to discharge conditions to enable the delivery of the project on site.”

Graham Harle, Chief Executive Officer at Gleeds, commented: “This is one of a series of Inland Border Facilities we’ve been supporting the HMRC on across the UK. They’re an important part of its strategy to limit disruption and delays at the borders post-EU Exit, and the granting of planning permission here is a testament to the collaborative efforts between all parties involved.”