Planning Committee

Words Erdington Local Editorial Team

Emergency services across Erdington and the surrounding areas could be left with “major gaps” in their mobile communications and radio coverage if plans for a new mast are not approved.

Airwave Solutions Ltd, which operates mobile communications networks for emergency services across the UK, currently has a mast on Edgemond Avenue, Pype Hayes.

However, following a Notice To Quit (NTQ) order the vital communications tower is being taken down by November 2024 to allow the landowner to proceed with plans for a residential development.

The potential loss of mobile and radio coverage for the emergency services on the front line has forced Airwave to submit an application to build a replacement mast at the Erdington Industrial Estate, Chester Road.

In supporting documents, the blue light services communications provider warns that not replacing the mast will put all emergency services at risk – with radio and mobile communication only possible from “a mixture” of sources “dependent upon precise location of officers, of vehicular sets and walkie talkies at street level.”

The organisation, who were bought out by Motorola in February 2016, further warn that without adequate communications infrastructure, radios used by the police, fire, and ambulance services would have “no penetration inside any buildings whatsoever.”

Airwave Solutions continued: “…officers in some areas would only have been able to communicate with each other when using car / fire engine / ambulance vehicle communication sets and no hand held calls will be able to made by officers who are either on the street or inside buildings, whilst in other areas some hand held walkie talkie units will be able to be used but only by officers on the street.”

They added: “The ramifications for public safety and national security if the site is not replaced will be extreme particularly at this precise moment in time of social unrest and rioting – potentially the police would have had no communications between officers and control rooms/commanders, leaving the residents of these areas and essential businesses in the districts unnecessarily more exposed to crime.

“Potentially the fire service would have been similarly exposed to no communications between fire fighters and unable to coordinate a response to any fire in this area; and this would have been no different for the ambulance service and would have been a severe risk to human life in and around the aforementioned town centre and surrounding districts.”

The planning application for the new blue light emergency services communication mast was submitted to Birmingham City Council in August and registered with the Planning Committee in the first week of September.

The application was made for a ‘replacement 24m high telecommunications mast with associated 3no. antennas, 2no. dishes, equipment cabinets and ancillary development works’, with any challenges or comments to be to the Planning Committee made by 3 October.

However, similar applications across the country have been held up by concerns from local residents, businesses, which lead to planning committee refusals or the application being eventually denied by the Planning Inspectorate.

Local elected officials listed as ‘consultees’ on the application are Erdington MP Paulette Hamilton (Labour), Cllr Basharat Mahmood (Pype Hayes Ward, Labour), and Birmingham Conservatives Leader Cllr Robert Alden (Erdington Ward, Conservatives).

To view the application online, click here to visit Birmingham City Council’s planning application portal and search using the reference: 2024/05239/PA.

Words & pics by Ed King (image of Paulette Hamilton supplied)

BoyleSports (UK) are appealing a Birmingham City Council (BCC) decision to refuse planning consent for their proposed new betting shop at 56 High Street, Erdington.

After getting the knockback from the BCC Planning Committee on Thursday, 28 July – where all members present voted against the proposed application – the Ireland born betting giant has now taken its appeal to the national Planning Inspectorate.

Plans to convert the once HSBC bank into a betting shop were also heavily contested by local residents, community groups, and elected officials from both sides of the aisle.

The deadline for representation is 2 February, where people can contact the Planning Inspectorate either in favour of or against the appeal – with many local campaigners and elected representatives encouraging locals to once again help block the application.

To contact the national Planning Inspectorate over the BoyleSports appeal, visit www.gov.uk/appeal-planning-inspectorate – click ‘Start now’ and ‘search’ for case 3307082.

Originally presented to Birmingham City Council in March 2022, BoyleSports (UK) had applied to turn the planning consent for the ground floor premises at 56 High Street, Erdington, from ‘Class E’ into ‘Sui Generis’ – allowing them to covert old HSBC bank into a gambling outlet.

The planning requests from BoyleSport (UK) also included an application to turn the first floor of the building into ‘self contained flats’, where it had previously been used for ‘office space’.

Launched in Ireland in 1982 by John Boyle, BoyleSports entered the UK gambling market in 2019 after buying out the independent bookmaker Wilf Gilbert – taking over 13 betting shops across the Midlands.

According to the Belfast Telegraph, as of May 2022 BoyleSports operates ‘more than 340 shops across the UK and Ireland, including 45 stores in Northern Ireland and two on the Isle of Man.’

Erdington High Street currently has seven betting shops open, one of which is already operated by BoyleSports (UK).

Official objections to were made in the initial BCC Planning Committee meeting on 7 July by Cllr Robert Alden (Con, Erdington), Sargent Ellis from the Neighbourhood Police Team (NPT), and ‘a local resident’.

The planning officer’s report cited ‘increased litter’, the threat of ‘anti-social behaviour/crime’, and ‘increased demand for on-street parking’ as driving factors behind the objections. T

he report further stated the site’s requested opening hours ‘are excessive’ and ‘would be detrimental to residential amenity’, which could also ‘impact on (Erdington’s) application for Levelling Up funding.’

Objections were also made by more local residents, campaign groups, and Paulette Hamilton – with the Erdington MP challenging the current appeal made by BoyleSports directly to Leader of the House of Commons.

BCC’s final decision to refuse BoyleSports’s requested change of planning consent for 56 High Street, despite it initially being ‘acceptable in principle’, was based on the grounds another betting shop ‘would fail to maintain or enhance the vitality and viability’ of the area and ‘would result in an increased fear of crime and anti-social behaviour’.

Crucially, the Council’s decision cited these reasons as conflicting with Policies TP21 and TP24 of the Birmingham Development Plan 2017, Policy PG3 of the Birmingham Development Plan 2017, and the National Planning Policy Framework.

Aside from galvanising local campaigners and residents, the application to green light another betting shop on Erdington High Street incensed political figureheads on both sides of the aisle – with more than one laying claim to the challenge.

Cllr Robert Alden (Con, Erdington) told Erdington Local: “Thank you to all the residents who signed the petition I submitted objecting to the original application, and for all the residents who supported protests against the application, this helped secure the rejection of the application.

“Now we need one more push as the applicant has appealed to the independent national Planning Inspectorate.

“When I spoke against the application at the Planning Committee meeting, they agreed with myself and residents that the application was wrong for Erdington.

“We now need residents to comment again and show the Planning Inspectorate that this application for another betting shop is wrong for Erdington and they should reject the appeal.

Cllr Gareth Moore (Con, Erdington), who sits on BCC’s Planning Committee and had previously been legally unable to comment, added: “It is vital people looking to comment on the appeal focus on the reasons the Council gave for refusing the application.

“The proposed development would provide a non-retail use that would fail to maintain or enhance the vitality and viability of the Erdington Local Centre or protect its primary retail function.

“The proposed development would result in an increased fear of crime and anti-social behaviour and would fail to create a safe environment that promotes positive social interaction.”

Cllr Moore further identified the relevant policies within the Birmingham Development Plan 2017 and National Planning Policy Framework – as referenced above.

Local resident and campaigner Basharat Dad, who ran as a Labour candidate for the Erdington Ward in the May local elections, also told Erdington Local: “I led the original campaign and our petition, supported by our local MP Paulette Hamilton and Police, was signed by hundreds of residents, community organisations and businesses all objecting to another betting shop coming to our High Street.

“It was rightly refused by Birmingham City Council. The company has now gone to government and appealed against the council decision. I now have led another campaign so that residents can write directly to the Planning Inspectorate and object, we will keep on persevering!”

Erdington MP Paulette Hamilton (Labour) added: “Last year, following a campaign I led with local people, Birmingham City Council made the right decision and rejected the application that would have opened an eighth bookies on our High Street.

“The gambling bosses are now appealing to the Government to overturn the wishes of local people. It’s very telling when gambling bosses believe they stand a chance of securing another bookies on our High Street by appealing to Ministers. You can tell whose side the Government is on, and it is not the side of local people.

“I have submitted my objection to the appeal and would urge everyone make their voice count by saying no to another betting shop on Erdington High Street.”

Any concerned parties can contact the Planning Inspectorate, either in favour or against the appeal made by BoyleSports (UK), by visiting: www.acp.planninginspectorate.gov.uk and searching for ‘case 3307082’.

For more on BoylesSport visit: www.boylesports.com

Anyone seeking help over issues around gambling, please visit: www.nhs.uk/live-well/addiction-support/gambling-addiction

Tag: Planning Committee

NEWS: Erdington emergency services left with “major gaps” in radio coverage if new mast is not approved