SDC forecasts around 400 operational jobs. Here’s how that compares with the campus’s land and power.
Source
Delivering local benefitsSDC M40 Campus · Developer forecastEmployment and economic forecasts · Checked 25 September 2026Read original source ↗
162.5 m²Maximum building footprint per forecast job (65,000 ÷ 400). Excludes wider site land.
0.75 MWMaximum IT load per forecast job (300 ÷ 400). Not total facility consumption.
Ratios describe scale, not a pass or fail threshold. SDC also forecasts £198m regional contribution during construction and £3.8m local spending; these are separate measures and shouldn’t be added together.
Source
The data centre campusSDC M40 Campus · Developer proposalDimensions, generators and cooling · Checked 25 September 2026Read original source ↗
What SDC says
SDC expects employment and training opportunities, with potential partnerships, apprenticeships and careers programmes.
Source
Delivering local benefitsSDC M40 Campus · Developer forecastEmployment and economic forecasts · Checked 25 September 2026Read original source ↗
What residents should scrutinise
How many roles are new and filled locally? What binds SDC to those numbers?
02 / Claim by claim
02
Digital need & location
Why here, specifically?
What SDC says
SDC presents the campus as capacity for the UK’s digital infrastructure, close to London’s fibre routes, customers and contractors.
Source
Project overviewSDC M40 Campus · Developer photographyExisting-site aerial photograph · Checked 25 September 2026Read original source ↗
What residents should scrutinise
Which tenant, workload or latency need requires this exact site, and what alternative sites were compared and ruled out?
03
Previously used land
An old use doesn’t settle new questions.
What SDC says
The site includes landfill and former mineral extraction land, which SDC cites in support of redevelopment.
Source
Site access, transport and constructionSDC M40 Campus · Developer forecastConstruction programme and access · Checked 25 September 2026Read original source ↗
What residents should scrutinise
What open landscape and habitats exist today, and how would remediation and excavated waste be controlled?
04
Landscape screening
Planting takes years. The buildings don’t.
What SDC says
SDC proposes lower building platforms, planted embankments and retained vegetation to reduce visibility.
Source
Landscaping and green spacesSDC M40 Campus · Developer proposalBunding, planting and nature trails · Checked 25 September 2026Read original source ↗
What residents should scrutinise
What stays visible above the planting in winter, and what secures replacement planting while it establishes?
05
Environmental standards
Meeting a limit isn’t the same as no change.
What SDC says
SDC reports general air-quality compliance, with potential small threshold exceedances in the modelled 72-hour backup-generator emergency case, which it considers unlikely and acceptable. Noise modelling is still in development.
Source
Emergency emissions and mitigation qualificationsSDC M40 Campus · Developer assessment, not regulatory approvalCCER printed p. 33: possible small human-health threshold exceedances in the 72-hour emergency case, considered acceptable by the developer. Printed pp. 40–41: SCR and ammonia-slip considerations; final controls under development. · Checked 25 September 2026Read original source ↗
What residents should scrutinise
What do the results show at nearby homes, including the character of noise at night?
National need≠Demonstrated local necessity
Strategic importance doesn’t remove local effects. The consultation is where these questions get answered. Ask them
Source
The planning processSDC M40 Campus · Developer programmeDCO route and indicative timetable · Checked 25 September 2026Read original source ↗
03 / The evidence scorecard
Claims, evidence, outstanding questions.
What’s evidenced, and what’s still to be tested.
Benefit
Developer claim / evidence
Status
What is still to be tested
Jobs
Approximately 400 operational roles; developer forecast.
Forecast
Direct FTEs, new roles, local recruitment and duration.
Investment
£198m regional construction contribution forecast.
Forecast
Calculation, additionality and geographic boundaries.
Digital infrastructure
Additional secure data-centre capacity.
Proposed
Tenants, workloads, need and alternative sites.
Training
Potential skills partnerships and programmes.
Not yet secured
Funded places, delivery partners and binding commitments.
Local spending
£3.8m forecast over construction.
Forecast
What counts as local, procurement and enforceability.
Land remediation
Ground investigation and remediation strategy proposed.
Proposed
Extent of contamination, excavation controls and monitoring.
National infrastructure
Project is pursuing the DCO route.
Proposed
Site-specific balance of benefits and residual effects.
Source
Delivering local benefitsSDC M40 Campus · Developer forecastEmployment and economic forecasts · Checked 25 September 2026Read original source ↗
Source
Environmental approachSDC M40 Campus · Developer assessment summaryAir quality, noise and ground conditions · Checked 25 September 2026Read original source ↗
Source
The planning processSDC M40 Campus · Developer programmeDCO route and indicative timetable · Checked 25 September 2026Read original source ↗