Wiltshire Council submits £32m depot planning application

Summarised from 2 outlets · Updated 22 Oct, 12:33 · Archive

Wiltshire Council has lodged a planning application for a £32 million central depot at Bowerhill in Melksham.

Wiltshire Council has lodged a planning application for its proposed central area depot at Bowerhill in Melksham. The £32.618 million scheme was approved by the council's then-Conservative administration in 2023 and is now being progressed under the Liberal Democrat-led administration that took control following the 2025 local elections.

The development will bring together highways, waste and streetscene services and the Household Recycling Centre on a single site. The plans include a reuse shop, offices and staff facilities, yards for materials and equipment, workshops for servicing heavy goods vehicles and other vehicles, fleet and bin lorry parking, fuelling and wash-down facilities and electric vehicle charging points.

The council says the depot is intended to be fit for purpose for the next 30 years and forms part of a wider strategy to reduce the number of depots it operates across Wiltshire. Bowerhill is intended to become the first of three strategic depots covering the north, central and south of the county. The application now awaits planning approval.

How it is being reported

• £32 million mega-depot takes major step closer after years in the pipelineA long-running £32 million plan for a huge new council depot in Wiltshire has taken a major step forward.Gazette & Herald · 22 Oct, 10:47
• £32 million mega-depot takes major step closer after years in the pipelineA long-running £32 million plan for a huge new council depot in Wiltshire has taken a major step forward.Wiltshire Times · 22 Oct, 10:47

In this story: Wiltshire Council · Melksham · Bowerhill · Christie Miller Sports Centre

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