Plans lodged for car park near nature reserve

A new 20-space car park could soon be installed at a Surrey nature spot and fishing lake in a bid to ease parking pressure on nearby residential streets.

Plans have been submitted to Spelthorne Borough Council to create a dedicated car park serving Church Lammas Lake visitors and authorised members of the fishery.

According to the Local Democracy Reporting Service, planning documents say the proposals would resolve "long-standing parking issues".

The documents state: "Church Lammas Lake has historically attracted recreational anglers... due to the absence of dedicated off-road parking facilities, visitors have regularly parked on surrounding residential roads."

Church Lammas Lake, a nature reserve and parkland located near Staines-upon-Thames, is managed by Aqua South, which said the scheme would also improve visitor management to the fishery.

"The proposal represents a management improvement to an existing recreational use rather than an expansion or intensification of that use," the planning statement added.

The scheme would include permeable gravel surfacing for the car park, as well as vehicle and pedestrian access gates and CCTV cameras.

Aqua South's statement said that no works are proposed that would fall directly within Church Lammas Lake.

It said: "The lake margins and associated aquatic environment will remain unaffected by the proposed parking area.

"The use of permeable surfacing will assist with the management of surface water and reduce the potential for concentrated surface water runoff from the car park."

Council planning officers will consider the proposals, with 24 November slated as a deadline for determination.

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