The subject site is located to the northeast of Maldon town centre in the Heybridge area. It is situated ten miles to the east of the county town of Chelmsford, eighteen miles south­west of Colchester and twenty miles northeast of Brentwood. The site is situated just off the B1022 (Colchester Road), a busy local arterial route and close to a crossing over the Chelmer and Blackwater Navigation. The site lies adjacent to the northern bank of the navigation, in a mixed commercial and residential area. It also lies to the rear of the Bentalls Shopping Centre anchored by Asda Supermarket and with accompanying smaller retailers serving the local community. The site is accessed via a shared road on the western side of Colchester Road, close to the roundabout junction with the B1026 Goldhanger Road.