Maidstone Borough Council has formally objected to Kent County Council’s draft mineral extraction plan, warning that proposed quarrying near Oaken Wood and Hermitage Quarry could cause irreversible damage to ancient woodland that has stood since at least 1600.

Residents living near Barming, Aylesford, Allington and Hermitage Lane could see their local woodland picture permanently altered if a county-wide quarrying plan goes ahead as drafted. Maidstone Borough Council posted on social media this week to flag its concerns and urge local people to have their say before the deadline.

The Kent Mineral Sites Plan — Kent County Council’s blueprint for where construction minerals such as Kentish ragstone, soft sand and gravel will be extracted between 2024 and 2039 — proposes extending Hermitage Quarry into land that includes Oaken Wood, a Plantation on Ancient Woodland Site (PAWS). A PAWS is a woodland that grew up on top of ancient woodland after the original trees were cleared, and which still retains the rare soils, plants and wildlife of the original habitat beneath. Under national planning rules, ancient woodland counts as irreplaceable, meaning planning permission should normally be refused for any development that damages it unless there are wholly exceptional reasons and a proper compensation plan in place.

Maidstone Borough Council says those exceptional reasons have not been demonstrated. Cllr Tony Harwood, the council’s Cabinet Member for Planning, has stressed the “irreplaceable” status of ancient woodland and made clear the council intends to resist any development that threatens key habitats. The council’s formal objection cites concerns about habitat fragmentation, damage to wildlife corridors and the loss of biodiversity in an area used by bats, birds, invertebrates and woodland plants. Kent Wildlife Trust has raised independent concerns, arguing that no compensation scheme can genuinely replace ancient habitat once it is gone.

Kent County Council’s position is different. Its technical assessments conclude that the Hermitage Quarry site can be developed in line with planning policy, provided mitigation measures and a compensation strategy for ancient woodland loss are put in place. The county council’s case rests on the need to secure a long-term local supply of Kentish ragstone — the distinctive grey limestone used in buildings and walls across the county — reducing the need to bring materials in from elsewhere. Supporters of the plan argue that concentrating extraction near an existing quarry limits landscape disruption across Kent compared with opening several new sites, and that post-quarrying restoration could deliver new habitats or public open space.

Critics are not convinced. Opponents argue that alternative supply options — including other quarries, recycled aggregates and reduced demand — have not been properly explored in the evidence behind the plan. There are also practical concerns for nearby residents: expanded quarry operations could mean more heavy lorry movements along the A20 and Hermitage Lane, along with noise, dust and changes to the view for households on the western edge of Maidstone.

The plan also affects other parts of Maidstone borough. Chapel Farm near Lenham is allocated as a soft sand site covering 35.4 hectares, with an estimated reserve of 3.2 million tonnes, and residents there face their own questions about HGV traffic and landscape change.

The consultation is running under Regulation 19 of planning regulations — the stage at which a plan is treated as near-final before it goes to the Secretary of State and an independent Planning Inspectorate examination. At this stage, responses must focus on whether the plan is legally sound and consistent with national policy, rather than general opinions about quarrying. If the Inspectorate finds that ancient woodland protections have not been properly applied, it can recommend changes before the plan is adopted.

Key information

  • Consultation deadline: 10 September 2026 — representations must address the legal soundness of the plan, not general views
  • Respond online: via Kent County Council’s consultation portal
  • Respond by post: Minerals and Waste Planning Policy Team, Sessions House, County Hall, Maidstone, ME14 1XQ
  • Hard copies of the plan are available to view at Sessions House, County Hall, Maidstone

The consultation deadline has now passed. Decisions pass to the Planning Inspectorate and ultimately the Secretary of State, leaving residents with no further direct say.