Residents explain votes for and against Marlow Film Studios

We spoke to members of the Marlow Town electorate – only 18 per cent of whom headed out to their allocated polling station on Thursday, May 9 – to ask them why it was important for them to have a say on the controversial planning application.

Jilly Williams said: “It would be development on the Greenbelt – it’s just not the right place for it. We need every bit of undeveloped space that we have by the river to take the flooding.

“I’ve driven past the other studio developments like Shinfield, and they’re huge, ugly buildings. It makes you think, ‘Would I really want that kind of thing here?’”

Tony Ketley shared her sentiment. He said: “It’s the Greenbelt issues and the traffic issues. It’s all very well for the developers to say they’ll spend millions improving (the road network). We don’t need it improved if you leave it alone!

“The demand also doesn’t seem to be led by the industry – there’s an oversupply of these kinds of facilities and I don’t believe the claims about creating thousands of new jobs either. The film industry is run by contractors.”

However, Marian Mulady took a different view. She said: “I voted yes to the development because I think Marlow is in danger of dying otherwise.

“I think we need something to give opportunities and employment to our youngsters, and I think the developers must have a good reason for wanting to build it here.

READ MORE: Everything you need to know about Marlow Film Studios

“I’m all for the Greenbelt, but I’ve lived in Marlow for 54 years and I’ve never been to that part of the town. Maybe if I were a dog walker or a bird watcher, I’d feel differently, but my thinking is, ‘Does it really matter? Is that area not ripe for rejuvenation?’ I can’t think that it wouldn’t be good for the town.”

However, Jeff was less inclined to be generous towards the developers’ vision. He said: “I’m concerned about the loss of Greenbelt and I’m very concerned about the scale of the development. It’s going to be massive – all the CGIs that you see are misleading because they show the internal view.

“These are going to be huge, 24-metre warehouses – I wouldn’t object so strongly if it was about a quarter or a third of the size.”

A spokesperson for the environmental campaign group Save Marlow’s Greenbelt said they were “delighted” with the results of the poll, which they said, “clearly shows that the vast majority of the 2,032 Marlovians who are familiar with the issues have concluded that it will be bad for the area”.

But Robert Laycock, CEO of the film studio, argued that the poll – which was voted for by parish members at a meeting in April – was “initiated by groups who want to use this mechanism to suggest widespread opposition” to the planning application.

He added: “We respect their rights to express views and are also grateful for those voters who support Marlow Film Studios.

“The low turnout and the limited numbers who voted against the questions on the parish poll do not suggest a high level of public opposition to our plans.

“Independent parallel polling carried out over the last week in a 5-mile radius of the Marlow Film Studios site indicates that over 80 per cent of local residents within a five-mile radius of the Studios surveyed support the film studios.  They know the benefits that our proposals will bring to the local area in terms of long-term careers, jobs and economic prosperity.  

“Marlow Film Studios represents a significant long-term local investment in the area and its people.  Building a world-class studio campus for a British world-class industry is something that Marlow and the local area will be proud of.”