Cemetery lodge plans revealed by parish council

A Telford parish council has applied for permission to change a cemetery lodge from residential to offices.

Hadley & Leegomery Parish Council had controversially tried to sell Hadley Cemetery Lodge but it ended up being taken off the property market at the end of last year.

A bid had been made for the lodge in Hadley Park Road but a council meeting was told it had fallen though partly because of a campaign against the sale.

Councillors decided on the U-turn after hearing that the council’s finances had “improved” and they now see it as being used as council office space to manage the use of the cemetery.

Planning agent Stephen Owen, of ArrolGreen, in Shrewsbury, has told planners at Telford & Wrekin Council that the proposals “represent an evolution of the building rather than redevelopment.”

At the end of 2025 the parish council sought pre-application advice from Telford & Wrekin Council.

The agent was told there are “no policy constraints which would restrict the building being used for office purposes.

“It is considered that the loss of one dwelling would be outweighed by the public benefits of having the parish council located on the site to effectively manage the cemetery and providing a central base for the parish council.”

The agent writes that the plans focus on the reuse and internal reconfiguration of the building to provide functional, accessible and flexible office space.

“The intention is to secure a viable long-term use for the property while ensuring that its scale, character and relationship with the surrounding area remain appropriate and unchanged.”

A public consultation on the plan has begun on the Telford & Wrekin Council website with the reference TWC/2026/0132