As documented on the appropriate pages, the site of the former Ling Hall Farm was requisitioned during the Second World War by the Ministry to become RAF Church Lawford. Once that site was decommissioned there were several initiatives prior to the creation of an Industrial Estate in a small portion of the reserved land – discussed here, which aligned with the continuing presence of the 60 or so houses in that area – the area known as the Circle was renamed as The Ryelands.
In 1990 Warwickshire County Council gave permission to Ideal Aggregates to excavate the 200 acre site at the southern end of Church Lawford Parish, creating a sand and gravel quarry, despite objections from local people in surrounding villages. Statements were made at the time by representatives from Church Lawford and Long Lawford / Lawford Heath about the likely impact of subsequent infill operations – noting how close this operation would be to the housing at Lawford Heath (50 metres in the case of The Crescent), as well as local businesses and farms. The permission was requested to cover 15 years of extraction operation – the site was to be filled and restoration completed by 2021. The quarry opened in 1991. By 1997 the parent company (Bruntcliffe Aggregates) had been granted permission to continue extraction until 2020.
in 1993 Leigh Interests established their presence at Ling Hall, and by 1994 had permission to dump household, industrial and commercial waste, but then applied for permission to dump waste classified as “difficult”, which might include cyanide, arsenic and mercury. Following vociferous local opposition the County Council deferred their decision for this additional permission.
In 1995 evidence of on Iron Age settlement was discovered by archaeologists working in the area.
in 1997 Leigh Environmental advised the press of their plans to provide a 45-acre nature reserve on the site, with quiet places for local people to walk and relax. A study was planned using monies from the new Landfill Tax scheme.
In 1998 Onyx UK (formerly Leigh Environmental) proposed to also recycle building waste, with permission granted by Warwickshire Council in 1999, who stated there were no policy reasons to refuse the application, with environmental impact kept to a minimum due to the location of the site.
In 1998 permission was granted for a Landfill Gas electricity generation plant.
In 2003 Breedon Aggregates, one of the quarrying companies, assists the village with materials for the Coronation Road car parking area.
In 2007/8 Church Lawford and Kings Newnham Village Hall Fund was awarded £50,000 under the Landfill Communities Fund linked to the Veolia / Onyx taxation (via Veolia Environmental Trust), and a further £15,000 from LaFarge Aggregates under the same scheme – the latter administered by the Warwickshire Environmental Trust. The Veolia / Onyx grant replaced an earlier offer of £45,000 from 2004 which had expired. Further contributions came from Biffa (via Biffa Award), and Waste Recycling Group (administered by Environmental Body WREN).
In 2009 it was revealed that sand and gravel extraction was complete.
In 2014 Veolia Waste Management (formerly Onyx) applied for permission to create a solar farm on the Ling Hall site to operate for a period of 25 years. Some of this facility was to be built on the reclaimed area following the completion of infilling. The application highlighted that the land in question was where agricultural processes were limited by existing aftercare requirements. It would be sited in an area where the landscape was described as being of “weak” condition due to the minerals extraction, waste management and landfill operation. The revenue generated was to offset the reduction in Landfill business due to the impact of the Landfill Tax introduced in 1997. This was granted.
In 2020 Veolia applied to extend their licence at the site for a further 10 years to May 2031. There was an admission that there were still significant void areas to be filled, and the current deadlines were not going to be met, so a ten year extension was needed. Various local objections were made (see this link), in several cases centring around the extended additional time it would take before the operation would complete and the site would be returned to public use. Permission was granted by Warwickshire Council. With this extended date, and the date granted for the solar farms to operate until 2040 it will be at least a century since Ling Hall Farm was requisitioned before the land is even considered for cultivation again.
In 2023 Warwickshire County Council awarded Veolia a 5 year contract worth £6 million to send 10,000 tonnes of waste to Ling Hall.