Willington Residents Object to Proposed McDonald’s Restaurant

Sue Bussey, a resident of The Castle Way near Willington in Derbyshire for over 60 years, has frequently contested planning applications for the property opposite her residence. She describes the most recent proposal as “almost the worst thing that could happen.” Fast food corporation McDonald’s intends to establish a 24-hour restaurant and drive-through on Ms. Bussey’s road, which also serves as the A38’s entry and exit slipway. She informed BBC Radio Derby, “It is dangerous.” Ms. Bussey added, “We’ve lived here a long time, I have attended accidents on this road many times. We’ve seen cars drive off the A38 straight into this site.” In April, the South Derbyshire District Council unanimously rejected McDonald’s proposals during a committee meeting. However, the company has since appealed this decision to the HM Planning Inspectorate. Ms. Bussey recounted, “When I was a child before the flyover was built, it had cows on it to start with, we played cricket on it as kids and later on, planning started to come in.” She continued, “It got more prevalent and very much a part of our yearly life was standing up in front of the council saying, ‘please don’t’.” The proposed development site currently operates as a skip storage facility, which was also initially denied by the council but later approved on appeal. The current application has garnered 235 objections and more than 100 expressions of support. Ian Hudson, a Labour district councillor representing Willington and Findern, commented, “I’ve never known an application like it with the amount of engagement from the public.” He noted that “McDonald’s had a well-funded social media campaign at the time, on Facebook, where a few swipes on your mobile phone could log your name and support at the district council.” Councillor Hudson further stated, “I had one chap contact me by email and I engaged a little bit in conversation, and it turned out he actually had never visited Willington, he wasn’t even quite sure where Willington was but he did like McDonald’s.” He contrasted this by saying, “I’m comparing those sorts of supporters to objectors who are ex-policemen, ex-traffic cops that have sent me emails with photographs of accidents and it’s not really like-for-like.” Katie Castle, another resident on The Castle Way who has lived there for just over three years, remarked, “It has made us debate wanting to live here, it’s not something you really want facing your own front door.” She also predicted, “If you try and come down this road anytime after school and between rush-hour, it’s already backed up past here, it’s just going to get more and more congested.” When questioned about her actions if the appeal succeeds, Ms. Castle responded, “Honestly, we would think about maybe moving.” Concerns regarding the proposals extend beyond the residents of The Castle Way. Diane Stevenson, owner of Cottage Garden Florist in Willington, located just under a mile from the proposed site, stated, “I just don’t think it’s a safe junction, there’s not enough of a slip road for you pulling off on to the A38, on to a 70mph road from such a short slip road.” She added, “It’s dangerous as it is now, so extra traffic coming through that junction, I just don’t think it’s a good idea.” A spokesperson for McDonald’s commented, “We’re excited about the opportunity to open a new site in Derbyshire, and await the decision regarding our appeal.” The public has until December 16 to submit their perspectives to the Planning Inspectorate, with a decision anticipated early next year. For updates, follow BBC Derby on Facebook, on X, or on Instagram. Story ideas can be sent to eastmidsnews@bbc.co.uk or via WhatsApp on 0808 100 2210. Copyright 2024 BBC. All rights reserved. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. Information on our approach to external linking is available.