Campaign to reopen ancient Gloucestershire route
We are pressing Gloucestershire County Council to reopen the ancient Bentley Lane, which runs to the east of Southam village onto Cleeve Common. The lane has been blocked by gates since 2010. The old track is laid out in the Bishops Cleeve Inclosure Award of 1836 with a width of 30 feet. It leads directly…
Read MoreWorcestershire Council rules out Trimpley Green loss
We have welcomed the decision of Worcestershire County Council to reject an application to deregister part of Trimpley Green, common land near Kidderminster. The application was made to the council in July 2016, in relation to land east of the pond on the Habberley road. The application proposed to deregister common land adjacent to Crofton…
Read MoreCommon-land swap defeated at Therfield Heath
With other objectors we are delighted to have defeated the proposed exchange of common land at Therfield Heath, near Royston in Hertfordshire. The Conservators of Therfield Heath and Greens wanted to swap 1.65 acres of common land off Sun Hill for the same area of woodland over a mile away. The proposed exchange was to…
Read MoreGovernment misses the opportunity to protect open space
We have criticised the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government for its lack of protection of open space. The ministry has recently consulted on a revised National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF), to which the we have responded. In particular, the society believes that the proposed new NPPF undermines the Local Green Space (LGS) designation…
Read MorePost-Brexit funding for farmers must include support for public access and common land
We have called for post-Brexit funding for agriculture to include support for public access to the countryside. The society has responded to the government’s consultation, Health and Harmony: the future for food, farming and the environment in a Green Brexit, a precursor to the Agriculture Bill. The government has said that public money must pay…
Read MoreEyesore rejected on much-loved Bridgend common
Welsh Ministers have rejected an application for timber posts on Pen Y Fai Common at Bridgend. The application for works on common land was made by Save Our Greenery, to prevent vehicles from parking on the common. The decision letter came from planning inspector Joanne Burston, on behalf of the Welsh ministers who determine applications…
Read MoreBadley Moor common, Norfolk, accessible at last
Dereham Walkers Are Welcome and the society are delighted that Mr Anema, the owner of Badley Moor common near Dereham in Norfolk, has erected a kissing-gate, giving access to the common. After some time when there was no effective access, a stile had been put up, but this failed to meet Natural England’s accessibility criteria…
Read MoreIndustrialisation of The Canyons, Torfaen
We have objected to an application from Peakman Ltd to develop Mynydd Llanhilleth Common, near Abertillery in Torfaen, south Wales. Peakman wants to build a new haul road, widen the existing Cefn Crib road and erect fencing on the common to enable it to extract aggregates from the nearby quarry. Because the works affect common…
Read MoreWe fight planning application on Royston Common
We have objected to the renewal of a planning application affecting common land in Hertfordshire. The Conservators of Therfield Heath and Greens, at Royston in Hertfordshire, have applied for the renewal of outline planning permission for eight dwellings on land at Sun Hill. This is registered common land and the conservators have already applied to…
Read MoreDamaging plan for South Wales common withdrawn
We are pleased that Western Power Distribution (WPD) has withdrawn its proposal to place 15 electricity poles with an overhead line across Gwaun Cae Gurwen Common three miles north of Pontardawe in Neath Port Talbot. WPD had sought consent from Welsh ministers for works on common land under section 38 of the Commons Act 2006.…
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