Planning approval has been granted for the Crown Development application for Sevington Inland Border Facility (IBF) near Ashford, Kent. This decision secures the long-term future of a nationally significant, and critical site supporting UK border operations following the country’s departure from the EU.
The approval allows the continued operation of the IBF and Border Control Post on the 48-hectare site, which has been in use under temporary consent since 2020. The facility will remain operational 24 hours a day, seven days a week, providing essential infrastructure for goods vehicle checks and customs processes linked to the Port of Dover and Eurotunnel.
Permission secures the retention of existing buildings, goods vehicle parking spaces, refrigerated semi-trailers, staff car parking, access roads, utilities, hardstanding, landscaping and associated works. The site is located on the outskirts of Ashford and will continue to operate as an Inland Border Facility and Border Control Post under the Crown Development Route. The project is being delivered for the Department for Transport (DfT), His Majesty’s Revenue & Customs (HMRC) and the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra), with planning authority oversight from Ashford Borough Council.
Working closely with the project team, which includes JLL Planning, architects Chetwoods, BCA Landscape Solutions and Stantec, Waterman co-ordinated a retrospective Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) and authored the Environmental Statement (ES). In addition, our specialists delivered a wide range of technical services for the scheme, including transport, air quality, noise, ecology, biodiversity, landscape and visual impact assessments, as well as arboriculture, flood risk, utilities, sustainability and operational waste management strategies. Our team also provided expert witness at the Crown Development Route Public Inquiry held in early December, which was the first such inquiry under this process since its adoption in 2025, covering matters such as noise, lighting, air quality, traffic, biodiversity and landscape.
To support long-term environmental stewardship, Waterman’s ecologists contributed to an updated Environmental Management Plan, ensuring the establishment and enhancement of habitats across the site. We also prepared an updated Staff Travel Plan to promote active and sustainable travel for employees.
