Center Parcs has confirmed that plans for a sixth holiday village near Gatwick have been abandoned.
The company had originally planned for the development at Oldhouse Warren, West Sussex to cost between £350 million and £400 million and create 1,500 permanent local jobs when it was first disclosed in July 2021.
The firm had described the 553-acres of woodland as a “suitable site” due to its location to the south of London and “excellent” transport links.
However, the domestic holiday operator now disclosed that the location is “not suitable” and it would not be progressing plans to develop a forest holiday village at Oldhouse Warren.
In a company update, it said: “In July 2021, the business secured an option agreement to acquire the privately owned woodland.
“We have a longstanding record of enhancing the habitats in which we build our villages and at the very heart of this is choosing a site that meets our specific environmental and social requirements.
“As part of our usual pre-planning process, we have undertaken rigorous environmental and ecological site surveys and, having analysed all the detail from these surveys, we have concluded that the site at Oldhouse Warren is not a suitable location for a Center Parcs village.
“Through our customer insights we are confident that there is strong demand in the UK market for a sixth Center Parcs village and, with this in mind, we will continue our search for a suitable site.”
Chief executiveColin McKinlay said: “We have always been committed to only building our villages in areas where we can improve the biodiversity of the site.
“Whilst it is obviously disappointing that we will not be able to bring Center Parcs to this part of West Sussex, this decision demonstrates how seriously we take our responsibility to the environment, as well as our ongoing commitment to enhancing the natural habitats in which our villages are located.
“Through our customer insights we are confident that there is strong demand in the UK market for a sixth Center Parcs village and, with this in mind, we will continue our search for a suitable site.”
This came as Center Parcs said it was closely monitoring inflation rates and increases in the general cost of living in the UK together with any changes in guest demand and spending patterns.
The company reported improved revenue of £426.6 million and earnings [ebitda] of £213.6 million to the end of the third quarter of its financial year to December 29. Occupancy of 97.3% across its 4,333 accommodation units was “broadly in line” with pre-Covid levels.
It said comparisons to the previous financial year were impacted by self- imposed capacity restrictions in place due to the pandemic.
The result was £33.7 million or 18.7% ahead of the year before, the last period to operate without restrictions.
“Within the quarter the impact of rising energy costs is reflected, alongside a return to pre-Covid operating conditions,” chief finance officer Katrina Jamison reported.
Forward bookings at February 3 were described as “strong” for forthcoming financial year with 29% of capacity sold, ahead of the same point in 2019.
The company is expected publish results for the year to April 20 in July.