A GARDEN centre in Clacton has been told by council bosses to stop trading illegally... including its popular Christmas Wonderland.

Tendring Council has issued the notice to St John’s Plant Centre, off St John’s Road, ordering it to stop trading as as a retail garden centre because its poor access leads to highway problems.

Officials said the site, on Earls Hall Drive, only has planning permission to operate as a wholesale outlet, selling horticultural and agricultural goods to trade customers.

Last year the council went to the High Court in a bid to close down the Christmas attraction due to traffic “chaos” outside the site, but the judge refused the application for an injunction.

The plant centre previously said the issue “all went way too far” and that it has tried to resolve traffic problems by planning improvements to the narrow road.

The council said talks have been ongoing with the business owners since last Christmas, but that it has decided to take action due to complaints about the impact on the highways and as a principle because other businesses must have the correct planning permissions to trade.

Fred Nicholls, councillor responsible for corporate enforcement, said: “We understand that the Winter Wonderland attraction is popular and we do not want to spoil people’s fun, but it is not fair on other businesses which work hard to comply with planning law – such as Clacton Pier’s Winter Wonderland.

“The access road is not suitable for such large numbers of vehicles, nor is the junction with St John’s Road – a major route into Clacton – able to cope. Last year we saw long queues, which also cause a blight for nearby residents.

“Any attraction on the scale it was last year would need a travel plan, a traffic survey, a retail survey, a sequential test as to why that location, and none of that has been provided to us.”

The enforcement notice allows 28 days before it comes into force and then gives the nursery six weeks to wrap up unauthorised trade.