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Thwaites Ltd are concerned about the proposal to build a large number of homes on the land owned by the Thomas White's Charity and the King Henry VIII Trust which lies to the rear of Thwaites' factory.

Many people from Cubbington village have written in the Leamington Spa Courier about this proposed development and we share their concerns regarding the increased flood risk and inadequate drainage. The factory was severely affected at the same time as many of the homes in Cubbington in 2007, resulting in a large claim on our insurers. We believe the proposed housing development adjacent to Thwaites would further increase the risk of flooding in the future.

We were told that flood prevention measures would be investigated with a proposal for a trench to be dug and the laying of pipelines. As far as we know no work has been initiated following these investigations.

There is also another aspect relative to a housing development close to our factory. We operate in a manufacturing environment, from necessity creating a certain amount of noise. At times we have a requirement to work shifts and weekends which would undoubtedly cause irritation to people living on a housing estate so close to the rear of our premises. We also use the surrounding land on our site for endurance testing for our products over extensive periods.

We would therefore expect that there would be no restrictions placed upon Thwaites' current manufacturing and testing activities in the event this housing development were to proceed with planning permission.