They’re a clever lot at LEGLAG (Leckhampton Green Land Action Group). In the ongoing battle to protect Leckhampton’s green areas they have now jumped on an opportunity to campaign for Country Park status, which arises from a clause in the new Coalition Government agreement. Such a designation would give this land a considerable amount of protection from the potential plans of property developers. We’ve posted their complete press release below, so that you can find out more. In the meantime, be sure to support the campaign by adding your name to the petition at the Paws in the Park event taking place in Burroughs field on Sunday 1st August. You can learn more about LEGLAG here, when LeckhamptonOnline met LEGLAG’s Chairman Kit Braunholtz. And remember, it’s only a tiny £3 for 3 years to join LEGLAG. What are you waiting for?
PRESS RELEASE July 27th, 2010
CAMPAIGN FOR COUNTRY PARK TO BE LAUNCHED!
LEGLAG (Leckhampton Green Land Action Group) announces that it will launch a campaign to have the attractive green fields to the South of Leckhampton designated as a “Country Park” at the “Paws in the Park” event at Burrows’ Field on Sunday August 1st.
These fields, formerly known as “The Leckhampton White Land” lie between the Shurdington Road and Church Road, and have for years been subject to applications by developers to build large housing estates. Although formerly they were all in Leckhampton, (and accordingly under the jurisdiction of Cheltenham Borough), boundary changes in the 1990s placed some of the most vulnerable fields in Shurdington, and therefore under the jurisdiction of Tewkesbury Borough.
LEGLAG was formed in 1993 with the objective of saving these attractive fields from inappropriate development. Up to now, no such development has occurred,;but there have been continuing threats, most recently from the excessive housing numbers required under the South West Regional Spatial Strategy. This particular threat has receded due to the revocation of all Regional Spatial Strategies by the new Coalition Government, which we are very pleased about. However, there is now a danger that developers and their lawyers may be able to take advantage of the inevitable interim period of uncertainty until the new Planning Bill is in force, and by legal pressure obtain planning permission for developments that have – up to now – been successfully fought off by LEGLAG and others. A pro-active campaign to protect the former “White Land” is therefore needed now!
LEGLAG will man a stall at the “PAWS IN THE PARK” event on August 1st, and will be asking members of the public to sign a petition to the two Borough Councils. The petition asks the Councils to designate this land as a “Country Park”. Such a designation would give this land a considerable amount of protection from the potential plans of the developers.
It should be explained that a “Country Park” designation would not mean that the land was redeveloped as a “Park” in the traditional sense. No change of ownership would follow, but it would mean that the countryside character of the land would be protected, and (just as in a National Park) there would be restrictions on what sort of planning applications would be allowed by the two Borough Councils.
The possibility of requesting this Country Park status arises from a clause in the Coalition agreement which states that under the new planning system (to be introduced by a Planning Bill in the Autumn), a new designation will be introduced , analogous to the current SSSI (Site of Special Scientific Interest). This new designation will be “Site of Special Community Interest” (SSCI), and this designation would be ideal for our proposed “Country Park”. (The very fact that this clause exists in the Coalition Agreement owes much to the foresight of Cheltenham’s MP Martin Horwood, who had this clause originally inserted into the Lib Dem election manifesto.) Martin Horwood is a very active member of LEGLAG and is strongly supporting our campaign. (His father, Don Horwood, was one of the founders of LEGLAG in 1993 and was for many years its Chairman).
In addition to asking people to sign the petition, we shall also be asking people to join LEGLAG. We already have over 500 members, but the more members we have, the more influence we shall have with Councillors and Planners! We have set a goal of achieving a membership of 1000 by the end of this year. (Membership only costs £3 for 3 years.)
We shall also be asking those who care enough about saving these fields from destruction by over-development to write a short letter to to the Planners who are currently trying to formulate a Joint Core Strategy for Cheltenham, Tewkesbury and Gloucester, and to tell them how much they care, and why! We believe that individual letters are an even better way to influence Councillors and Planners than a Petition. But we shall try to get as many petition signatures as possible, because we believe our views are widely shared across Cheltenham, as well as in the Leckhampton area where we naturally have the strongest support. We have also in the past had strong support from Shurdington (and indeed further afield).
ENDS
Kit Braunholtz, Chairman, LEGLAG
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