Set-back in fight against Somerset solar farm
Campaigners against a solar ‘farm’ near the famous Jack and Jill Hill at Kilmersdon, Somerset, have suffered a set-back. INRG Solar Ltd has appealed to the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government against Mendip District Council’s refusal of planning permission for a solar farm. The developers want to erect about 25,000 solar panels…
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Wycombe Council rejects Marlow polo-plans a second time
Wycombe District Council has again rejected a planning application for polo practice at Low Grounds Farm, near Marlow in Bucks. The proposed development would lead to interference with those seeking quiet recreation on the nearby Harleyford Lane. Harleyford Properties Ltd’s application was for change of use of land from agricultural use to polo practice and…
Read MoreSecretary of State calls in Cumbrian wind-turbine application
We are delighted that Eric Pickles, the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, has called in the planning application for three wind-turbines near Killington Reservoir in Cumbria (near junction 37 on the M6 motorway) —the gateway to the Lake District and the Western Fells of the Yorkshire Dales. South Lakeland District Council approved…
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Eyesore in South Devon beauty-spot
We have objected to plans by the Harlequin Group to erect a telecommunications mast and associated development in open countryside in south Devon. The application will be determined by South Hams District Council. The 15-metre high mast would be close to the listed Houghton Farm, a mile north of Ringmore, near Bigbury. It would also…
Read MoreUnfair exchange at Beverley Westwood Common
We have objected to plans by the East Riding of Yorkshire Council to swap land on Beverley Westwood Common for a small piece on the northern edge. This is to accommodate a cycle track across the common. The law (section 16 of the Commons Act 2006) requires any exchange of common land to take account…
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Our new activist for Wealden District, East Sussex
We have appointed Mr Brendan Clegg as our local correspondent for Wealden District in East Sussex. Brendan will be the society’s eyes and ears, keeping a close watch on paths, commons, greens and open spaces in the district and intervening as necessary. Says Brendan: ‘I am very pleased to be appointed as local correspondent for…
Read MoreNew Planning Practice Guidelines published
In a written statement on 6 March, the Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Planning, Nick Boles, announced the publication of the Coalition Government’s updated Planning Practice Guidelines. In his statement, Mr Boles refers to the government’s commitment to ensuring that countryside and environmental protections continue to be safeguarded and that power is devolved, not…
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We call on local councils to help rescue green spaces
We have urged local councils to be active in rescuing green spaces in their communities. Our case officer, Nicola Hodgson, was addressing the Society of Local Council Clerks’ national conference for practitioners near Derby on 1 March. She spoke on the threats to town and village greens, common land and open spaces, and what local…
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Richard Harland, 1920 – 2013
We remember Richard Harland, our former vice-chairman who died aged 93 last November, and who made a quiet but significant contribution to commons and access. Richard Harland was a Quaker, a pacifist and campaigner, who loved beautiful landscapes and their history, and had a strong belief that people should be free to enjoy the countryside.…
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Fencing on Hunsdon Mead common is approved
The Planning Inspectorate has approved an application from the Herts and North Middlesex Wildlife Trust for fencing on Hunsdon Mead Common in Essex. The trust applied to erect a permanent, 1,000-metre fence along the line of the towpath boundary of the common to prevent disturbance of sheep grazing the common. We objected because the fence…
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