Dover District Council has approved revised plans for a new hotel and spa and ‘world class’ surf lagoon at Betteshanger Country Park in Kent.
The hotel, spa and The Seahive surf lagoon will occupy less than 10% of the 231-acre park, which has been built on a former colliery site.
Circa 9.1 acres of farmland is being added to the park to create a new habitat for turtle doves – in addition to a further 15 acres of off-site land at Hammill Fields – and the park has also appointed a dedicated wildlife warden who will be responsible for overseeing the management and protection of wildlife at Betteshanger Country Park.
Ben Geering, head of planning for Betteshanger Country Park, said: “This decision is a win for nature and a win for the community. It honours Kent’s mining heritage by securing Betteshanger Park’s future and will boost the district’s economy. By supporting the applications this decision has helped us to save the park for future generations.
“Our vision, as it always has been, is to create a country park that provides for everyone in the community while creating hundreds of jobs and transforming Betteshanger into a world class tourism destination – and that is what we intend to deliver.
“Having a high-quality hotel in the area will help the district to attract more investment to the wider area. The Open [golf tournament] is a perfect example of this, however it’s about much more than time-limited events, it’s about providing a spa-hotel locally that will encourage people to visit and spend more time and money in our beautiful local towns and villages.”
Jim Storey, founder of The Seahive, added: “In the years that followed the closure of the former mine, the vision for this former spoil tip was for it to be used to encourage regeneration, employment, ecology, heritage, education, and community benefit. Today’s decision marks a turning point for the future of the park, the ecology within it and the health and wellbeing benefits it can provide for the local community – something that I am passionate about.
“This will be a world-class destination which puts Kent on the global map. It will not just create jobs and drive inward investment but will also have a material impact on people’s physical and mental wellbeing at a point in time where it has never been more important.”
