Cliveden House Hotel operator objects to latest plans for Cookham crematorium

The operator of the historic Cliveden House Hotel is among dozens of objectors opposing plans to build a new crematorium in Cookham.

In December, funeral company Elegy resubmitted plans to build a new crematorium with a ceremony hall and memorial arboretum across two greenbelt fields on Long Lane.

The original application was withdrawn in mid-September, amid strong criticism from residents and local community leaders.

The latest plans have once again attracted a flurry of objections, including one from the company running the five-star Cliveden House hotel, raising fears the plans would ‘give rise to heritage harm to Cliveden’.

The historic Cliveden site in Taplow is owned by the National Trust, but the hotel is run by London and Regional Group Hotels Limited, which is owned by billionaire property developers Ian and Richard Livingstone.

A letter on the RBWM planning portal from Town Legal LLP, acting on the hotel group’s behalf, raises concerns including the impact of the proposed development on local views painted by famous Cookham painter Sir Stanley Spencer.

The letter said: “The proposed development would be inappropriate development within the greenbelt, and there are not very special circumstances which clearly outweigh the harm to the greenbelt by reason of inappropriateness.

“The proposed development has the potential to give rise to heritage harm to Cliveden, which hosts Grade I-listed buildings and is a Grade I-registered park and garden.

“Having regard to the above matters and the conflict with adopted policies the planning balance weighs in favour of refusing the application’.

Richard Evans, managing director at Elegy, said the company is ‘surprised at the Cliveden hotel company’s objection’.

He added: “Cliveden Park is over two miles to the east of the crematorium site, and we do not believe it would be possible to see the crematorium from any of the park’s heritage assets.”

The Cookham Society also objected to the plans and referenced the impact to the view which inspired Sir Stanley Spencer’s 1938 oil painting The Bridle Path, Cookham.

“The proposed development here would be by far the nearest building to this viewpoint and would damage this very important view,” the society said.

Mr Evans said Elegy had withdrawn the previous application to ‘make a series of practical improvements to address the concerns of the local Cookham village activist group’.

He refuted concerns over the views, adding that the ‘development has been designed not to affect the views of any of the painted scenes by Sir Stanley Spencer, including the Bridle Path Cookham’.

Other objectors included Maidenhead MP Josh Reynolds who raised concerns over the impact on the greenbelt and local wildlife, as well as on bridleways and footpaths.

Cookham Parish Council has also objected to the plans, considering it ‘inappropriate development’ in the greenbelt, and raising concerns over the impact on traffic congestion, air pollution and ‘views painted by [Sir] Stanley Spencer’.

Mr Evans added: “We have worked hard throughout to allay concerns and our re-submission is a demonstration of our commitment to be a good neighbour.

“It is certainly not fair for activists to describe our scheme in such stark terms.

“Anyone who looks carefully at the new application will see we have added landscaping, extra habitat and biodiversity.

“We have widened the new pavement for safety.

“We are covering the cost of new bus stops on Switchback Road North, paying for improvements to the surfacing of existing passing bays along Long Lane to the west of the site and adding road markings.

“The facility is badly needed for all the residents of Maidenhead, including everyone who lives in Cookham and has been sensitively designed to blend into the countryside as the council’s officers have previously recognised.

“If allowed, this crematorium will become a cherished community asset and greatly improve the care to the bereaved of Maidenhead whose interests should not be overlooked.”