Controversial plans for a new Lidl supermarket may need Welsh Government approval

Ted Peskett, local democracy reporter

Controversial plans for a new Lidl supermarket, near an award-winning Welsh village, may need Welsh Government approval before being given the go-ahead.

Vale of Glamorgan Council’s planning committee met on Thursday, February 13 to approve a number of conditions that will be attached to plans for the supermarket, earmarked for land in between Llanmaes and Llantwit Major.

The planning committee approved the plans, against the recommendations of council planning officials, in December 2024.

However, they are currently subject to a holding direction by the Welsh Government.

That means the Welsh Government is considering if it should have the final say on whether or not the scheme goes ahead.

‘Ignored’

Residents in Llanmaes again vocalised their opposition to the plans, saying they felt “ignored” by the planning committee and Lidl, and continued to say that the development is in “totally the wrong place”.

Vale of Glamorgan Council ward member for Llantwit Major, Cllr Gwyn John, again raised concerns about traffic in the area and the potential for large vehicles to travel through the village to get to the supermarket.

On the proposed opening times of 8am to 10pm, he said: “There is no reason to keep a store of this nature open until 10pm with lights blaring across the village of Llanmaes”

Another resident and local community councillor, Graeme Smith, repeated his concerns made in December about the proposal being in “totally the wrong place” and echoed Cllr John’s concerns about traffic.

However, he noted that a condition had been included requiring the 122-capacity car park to close after hours.

‘Boy racers’

Mr Smith said: “[I am] glad the car park is going to be locked at night. The Northern Access Road [has] unfortunately become a magnet for boy racers.”

He also claimed that about a third of shoppers will be travelling to the supermarket from St Athan. This was disputed by Lidl.

The application site is located in the Llanmaes settlement boundary.

The area itself was designated as a conservation area in 1978 and has won the Vale of Glamorgan Council Best-Kept Village competition numerous times.

Conservative councillor and member of the planning committee, Cllr Christine Cave, said she was opposed to the development of a new supermarket in the proposed location, calling it “very unsuitable”.

A number of residents living in Llantwit Major have come out in support of having a new supermarket near where they live.

Llantwit Major was described as “woefully under-serviced” by one resident who said the town needs more options for peoples’ food shops.

Plaid councillor and Vale of Glamorgan Council planning committee member, Cllr Ian Johnson, said the south west of the county is an area that “at the moment doesn’t have this sort of service”.

The conditions that have been put in place as part of the project also include controls on lighting, with the applicants agreeing to switch off lighting on site outside of the supermarket opening hours.

One of the conditions relating to opening hours was also amended, with planning committee members agreeing to put forward a closing time of 9pm instead of 10pm.

A planning consultant from Carney Sweeney, Rob Mitchell, was speaking on behalf of Lidl UK at Thursday’s meeting.

He said Lidl is “proud to be a good neighbour to the communities it serves” and that it has a “wealth of experience in developing its stores to ensure residential amenity is safeguarded”.

He also said the supermarket is committed to avoiding routing construction and delivery vehicles through Llanmaes.

Vale of Glamorgan Council is yet to find out exactly when the Welsh Government will make a decision on the holding direction that the supermarket plans are subject to.