Southborough Common is a jewel
‘Southborough Common is a jewel’, says Kate Ashbrook, our general secretary. Kate visited the Kent common on 8 February and then spoke at a public meeting organised by Kent High Weald Partnership which is consulting local interests on the future of the common. ‘Common land is immensely special,’ says Kate. No other land type has…
Read MoreKent County Council restores public access to ancient site
Congratulations to Kent County Council, the access authority, for going to court to restore forbidden land to the public. The council took Mr John Button, owner of the historic Capel Battery on the clifftop at Capel-le-Ferne, near Folkestone, to the magistrates’ court, after he blocked off public access to the site. The land had been…
Read MoreNew coastal access starts this summer
We are delighted that the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) has announced that the first stretch of the England Coastal Path will be open this summer. The first section of route starts at Rufus Castle in Portland and will end at Lulworth Cove, both in Dorset, and covers 32km of coastline along…
Read MoreDevelopment on scenic Surrey common
We are dismayed that the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs has granted Southern Gas Networks permission for a gas installation on Broad Street and Rydes Hill Commons, near Guildford in Surrey. Southern Gas applied to the environment secretary in 2008 to place a gas installation on the common, replacing an existing…
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The campaign to save the view from Richmond Hill
We have joined campaigners fighting to save the magnificent view from Richmond Hill. This view is threatened by a high-rise residential block as part of the redevelopment of Twickenham station. The objectors include the Twickenham Residents’ Action Group, TRAG. Richmond Council has accepted a proposal from Network Rail and Solum Regeneration for this development. The…
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We call for recognition of Natural History Museum’s open space
We have backed our member the Kensington Society and other local societies(1) in calling for the council’s planning guidance to recognise the land surrounding the Natural History Museum as a local green space that is open to the public. We sent the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea a strong submission that the council’s Supplementary…
Read MorePath campaigners relieved at new deal for ‘Poohsticks Path’
We are relieved that a development which threatened the footpath leading to the famous Poohsticks Bridge in Ashdown Forest is to be removed. Mr and Mrs Ben Van Praagh of Faircote Hall and stud, at Hartfield in East Sussex, had been given retrospective planning permission for a new riding arena which crossed the public footpath…
Read MoreAshton Vale green goes to High Court
We welcome the news that the High Court will review Bristol City Council’s decision to register only part of the 42-acre site at Ashton Vale, Bedminster, as a town or village green. The application for judicial review was made by the Save Ashton Vale Environment (SAVE) group. Bristol City Football Club wants to build a…
Read MoreOutdoor groups blast Stowe School’s golf course plans
We are challenging Stowe School’s golf course plan. With the Bucks, Milton Keynes and West Middlesex Ramblers, we have objected to the posh public school’s scheme to move its existing north Bucks golf course onto land crossed by public paths, and have submitted our objections to Aylesbury Vale District Council, the planning authority. The proposed…
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Crucial Henley greenspace
We have opposed plans by the Secretary of State for Transport to stop up a 26-metre width of public highway adjacent to 94-102 Bell Street in Henley-on-Thames. The proposed highway-closure is to enable Chesterton Commercial to construct parking spaces here. We were among the objectors to the plans for car parking on the green space,…
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