A huge new laboratory on Jealott’s Hill in Warfield won’t be built unless plans are also secured for a major housing development in the area, the company that owns the site has said.

Agriculture research firm Syngenta was recently given planning permission to build a new lab – known as Biostar – which it says will allow it to continue the biological research it carries out on site, with older buildings 'no longer fit for purpose'.

But the firm also says construction is unlikely to go ahead unless plans are also approved for other major projects on the land – including a major housing development.

It comes after plans for a 2,000 home “garden village” at Jealott’s Hill were ditched earlier this year. Now Syngenta says it is working on a new planning application.

READ MORE: Huge new laboratory to be built on Jealott's Hill, Warfield

A spokesperson for Syngenta said: “Whilst the planning process for Syngenta’s proposed BioStar facility has now effectively completed, there is no current timeline for breaking ground.

“The absence of a supportive planning position for wider development at Jealott’s Hill remains a strategic challenge. Syngenta is working to develop a new planning vision for the land at Jealott’s Hill with the aim of unlocking further investment to ensure the site has a thriving future.”

Syngenta says it will struggle to attract the investment needed to build the lab without wider plans for a science and innovation park and a major housing development.

Bracknell Forest Council included plans to build 2,000 homes at Jealott’s Hill as part of its draft local plan – which says where major housing and infrastructure projects will be built over the next 15 years.

But when a government planning inspector looked at the draft local plan, they said the Jealott’s Hill development was “unsound” – and recommended that it be scrapped.

READ MORE: Bracknell Forest residents could soon get say on troubled Local Plan

The local plan has still not yet been finalised. But Bracknell Forest Council confirmed in July it had dropped the 2,000 home Jealott’s Hill development from the plan.

Now Syngenta says this means it could struggle to get the investment it needs – and hinted that it is working with the council to come up with a new planning application.

The spokesperson said: “Removal of the proposal from the Local Plan has implications for releasing wider investment.

“Scale and cross subsidy are required for the site to attract large scale capital investment to build a science cluster, particularly given the level of competition to attract investment into advanced research platforms in other international locations.”

They added: “Several options are being considered, and we hope to work with local government in the coming months to find a planning solution that will work for all.”