Illuminated ad board plan goes down badly in Herefordshire town

Hintons Country & Garden of Station Yard, Worcester Road near Leominster railway station, wanted to put up a six-by-three-metre roadside LED board to display ads to northbound traffic.

It would “cause no material harm to either amenity or public safety”, according to the firm’s planning application submitted in January.

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But the town council said it would “be a distraction causing a safety issue”, and a source of light pollution.

Among the 20 public objections, Leominster resident Emily Jones said it would be “an eyesore that would disturb nearby residents”.

A Mr S Thornhill said the idea was “all part of the uncontrolled decline of Leominster”.

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And Elizabeth Watson called it “enormous, ugly, intrusive and unnecessary”, adding: “Similar LED illuminated signs in Edgar Street in Hereford completely dominate the streetscape and are a dangerous distraction to drivers.”

A bid to put up a similar-sized screen opposite the city's Old Market multi-storey car park  was refused in 2021, but was granted permission on appeal last May.

A county highways engineer agreed the Leominster sign “would cause distraction to vehicles… which could lead to a severe impact on highways safety”.

This appeared to convince planning officer Eleanor Barry, who concluded the proposal “fails to demonstrate it will not impact upon highway safety and visual amenity”.