Councillors will debate controversial plans to move a Josiah Wedgwood statue – for a third time – following new objections.

Planning committee members at Stoke-on-Trent City Council last month granted planning permission to a £9 million scheme to revamp Station Road in Stoke, which includes relocating the Grade II listed statue of the master potter to the other side of the road.

They voted to approve the plans at the second time of asking, after originally deferring the decision at their meeting in December due to concerns over the statue move. But now the issue will come before the committee for a third time in three months, with members being asked to grant listed building consent.

Proposals involving listed structures require both planning approval and listed building consent, which are assessed separately using different criteria. According to an officer's report, the application has been referred to the committee due to two 'material objections' being received in relation to the statue move.

Due to a new rules adopted in January, these objections 'cannot be overcome via planning condition, obligation or otherwise', and so have to be considered by the committee. The objectors question the need to move the statue, which dates back to 1863, and say that it provides a 'focal point' for Winton Square in its current location, on the opposite side of the road to the station.

Plans to move the statue of Josiah Wedgwood to the other side of Station Road have already been approved (Nub News).

One of the objections has been submitted by Dr Anna Cossu on behalf of Britainnia Hotels Limited, the owner of the North Stafford Hotel.

Dr Cossu says: "The plans to remove the Josiah Wedgwood statue is a significant cause for concern. At present the statute provides a focal point for Winston Square and its removal would shift focus. Whilst we understand measures have been taken to ensure the safe moving of the statute, given its age and significance, the need to move the statue has not sufficiently been justified against the risks."

The city council's wider Station Road scheme involves the installation of a bus gate that would bar most through traffic, in order to improve public transport links and create a more pleasant environment for pedestrians.

The road would be realigned away from the station to make a larger pedestrianised area outside the building's entrance, with the relocated statue facing the doors from the edge of the expanded footway.

An external consultant found that moving the statue would cause 'a medium degree of less than substantial harm' to heritage assets, but that this would be outweighed by the benefits such as reduced traffic. Officers have therefore recommended that the committee grants listed building consent.

The council's wider Station Road scheme includes the installation of a bus gate (Google).

The report states: "A medium degree of less than substantial harm to nearby heritage assets has been identified but…the public benefit arising from the development is capable of materially and demonstrably outweighing this identified harm."

Under the revised local code of conduct adopted in January, more applications involving listed buildings, or where the council itself is the applicant, will have to be considered by the planning committee, rather than being dealt with by officers using delegated powers. Concerns were raised at the time that this change could result in too many applications coming before the committee.

Planning committee members will discuss the statue application when they meet on Wednesday, March 20.

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