Car wash approved for former dealership site on Newport Road in Stafford

Plans for a new self service car wash at 11A Newport Road, Stafford have been approved by Stafford Borough Council. The application was decided on 6 March 2026 and permission has now been granted for the vacant site, which had most recently been used as a car dealership.

The approved scheme is for the addition of a self service car wash and associated apparatus on the site of the former dealership. Planning officers recommended approval, saying the site is previously developed land within the Stafford settlement boundary and that bringing the currently vacant site back into use was acceptable in principle, subject to conditions.

What has been approved

The car wash will include a new flat roof structure with four wash bays, along with associated equipment and plant. The two existing single storey buildings on the site are set to be kept and used for storage and day to day running of the business.

The plans were amended during the application process, with the number of bays reduced from five to four. The site is proposed to operate on a 24 hour basis, although the vacuum bays will have more limited hours. Under the planning conditions, only two wash bays can be in use at the same time overnight between 11pm and 7am, and the vacuum stations are limited to 8am to 10pm.

A site with a long motoring history

The Newport Road site has had vehicle related uses for years. Planning papers say it was originally a petrol filling station before later being converted into a car sales site. The dealership that leased the site stopped trading there in June 2023, and the land has been vacant since then.

The design statement also shows earlier planning history linked to motoring uses. In 1985, permission was granted to redevelop the existing petrol filling station with new pump islands, a canopy, a sales building and a car wash. More recently, an application to turn the site into a hot food takeaway was refused in early 2025.

Where it is and what is nearby

The site sits on Newport Road, close to Stafford town centre, Victoria Park, Stafford Railway Station, Tesco Extra and the former Eagle Inn, a Grade II listed building now incorporated within Eagle House. Planning officers said the area is already shaped by commercial uses, and that the car wash would be read in that wider setting rather than looking out of place.

Because of that location, heritage and design were looked at closely. The final design uses dark cladding with blue highlights, and external lighting was reduced during the application after comments from the conservation officer. Separate advertisement consent would still be needed for some signage if the operator wants illuminated signs later on.

Who is behind it

Planning documents name the client as Smart Car Wash Ltd.

The design statement says the applicant provides modular car wash systems with locations across England and Wales. It describes the business model as a compact, contemporary self service setup designed to fit onto existing hard surfaced sites with minimal intervention to the land and buildings already there.

Traffic, drainage and nearby neighbours

Highways officers raised no objection to the amended scheme, subject to conditions around access, internal layout and drainage. The transport note says the eastern access will be used as the entry and the western access as the exit, keeping vehicles moving one way through the site. It also says the site’s two access points have been in use for a long time and there is no evidence of an existing safety issue with them.

The same report said the proposed use would create only a small increase in vehicle movements compared with the site’s former dealership use, and would not have a material impact on the local highway network.

Drainage was another key issue because the site already has extensive hard surfacing and sits in an area where the flood map shows some surface water ponding. Staffordshire County Council’s flood team said it had no objection in principle, provided the final detailed drainage design and long term maintenance arrangements were secured. A drainage condition has now been attached to the permission.

There were only two neighbour responses recorded during the application, one objecting over traffic congestion and one neutral comment raising concerns about future maintenance and monitoring of the interceptor.

What happens next

Planning permission has been granted, but the scheme still has to meet a number of conditions before and during operation. These include the highway works, drainage, matte finish materials, and approval of the screens between the bays.

So while the plan is now approved, there is still some detail to be signed off before the car wash can open.

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