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home ¦ news and events ¦ about us ¦ local to you ¦ support us ¦ contact us ¦ help and advice ¦ campaigns ¦ press releases ¦ publications ¦ links |
Local to You
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Photo: Nick Kennedy/uklandscape.net Lawton Woods, Cheshire |
Local 'District' groups are organised to match local government boundaries and concentrate primarily on planning and sustainability matters, monitoring and commenting on planning applications received by their local authority.
They also tackle proposals for new or extended landfill sites and ‘power from waste’ (the description most commonly used for incinerators as opposed to bio-mass plants).
They work to protect not only specially designated areas such as Areas of Special County Value and the Green Belt, but all countryside and often get involved in issues such as open spaces, parks, building design and social exclusion.
If you are interested in finding out more about a particular District, please contact the District Representative using the contact details listed here.
To see information about each District, either scroll down the page or, to go straight to information about a particular District, click on the name below:
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For news about Branch, please click here.
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Note, some files may require the use of a file reader such as Adobe Acrobat. To obtain a free copy of Acrobat Reader, please click on the icon to the left. However, CPRE Cheshire Branch cannot take responsibility for any problems which may be caused by using Acrobat or another reader. |
Officers
Chairman: Roger Parkin/Randal Hibbert (alternating) Secretary: Vacant Treasurer: Roger Parkin
To contact the District Officers click here.
Meeting frequency and venue:
Normally monthly at a member’s home.
All members are welcome to come along and find out the latest news in the District.
Our next two meetings will be held on Wednesday 25th April at 9:30am and Monday 18th June at 2pm (NB not 9:30am as usual). Please contact us to find out the venue for each meeting.
Date for your diary:
The 2007 AGM of Chester District will take place on Monday 19th March at 7:30pm at Hargrave Church Hall.
The AGM business will be followed by a talk by Councillor Doug Haynes on ‘The Impact of the Landed Estates on our Countryside’, describing how the great estates of this part of Cheshire – such as Peckforton, Bolesworth and of course Eaton – have shaped our landscape over the last 150 years or so. With lots of photographs to bring the story to life, this should be an enjoyable and interesting evening.
Hargrave is just a short drive South of Chester, and the Church Hall has recently been refurbished to make an attractive venue. It has an interesting history, and we hope to have an exhibition describing the story of ‘local boy made good’ Sir Thomas Moulson. He became Lord Mayor of London in the 17th century, and his Trust still plays an active role in the area to this day, including owning the Church Hall and helping local young people as they start out in life.
For more information, please click here to see the AGM notification, including directions to Hargrave.
Current issues/campaigns
The fight to safeguard Chester's Green Belt goes back a long way. In 1987, Chester City Council proposed rolling back the Green Belt by 1,000 acres to allow the expansion of Chester. CPRE members put forward a strong case for the protection of the Green Belt which led to the intervention of the Secretary of State. Successive Secretaries of State and Planning Inspectors have continued to back the importance of the Green Belt to Chester and the Green Belt has, so far, remained in place.
The most recent challenge to Chester's Green Belt comes from the draft Regional Spatial Strategy. Chester District has been targeted for 7,500 new homes and a second Business Park. These are based on claims - which CPRE strongly challenges - in the West Cheshire and North East Wales Sub-Regional Strategy for Green Belt release.
After almost 20 years of revision, the Chester District Local Plan has finally been adopted. We have been active in monitoring and, where appropriate, seeking to influence the final review stages of the Local Plan. Now it is finally in place, we will continue to monitor adherence to the plan, particularly where proposals are brought forward which are not allowed for in the Plan.
We have supported Chester City Councillors in their refusal (by a unanimous decision in the Planning sub-committee and by 36 to 6 in the full Council) of planning permission for the re-location of West Cheshire College on strong planning grounds.
The proposal for the construction of 135 new housing units on the Handbridge campus (to pay for the move) would, we believe, be inappropriate development in the Green Belt and would set a dangerous precedent for further challenges to the Green Belt on the edge of the City. The change of use of the Greenbank Centre for offices and the construction of new houses would contravene the Cheshire Structure Plan and the City Council's restraint policy on new windfall housing development.
CPRE supported Chester Civic Trust and the Conservation Area Advisory Committee in their objection to the over-bearing massing of the proposed new College building at Northgate and its potential for overspill parking in the surrounding area.
CPRE appreciates that West Cheshire College wishes to upgrade and improve college facilities but has seen no evidence to justify the very special circumstances that would clearly outweigh the harm to the Green Belt.
We were delighted that Cheshire
County Council have included re-opening the station in their local transport
plan, but very disappointed that a consultant’s report assessing the feasibility
of services from the station concluded against reopening the station. See
http://www.cheshire.gov.uk/TransportAndRoads/beestonrailway/.
We believe that the survey took
insufficient notice of local support and of the potential traffic generated
by visitors to this popular area.
CPRE would like to remind all those campaigning for the re-opening of the station that Chester's Local Plan contains a policy (TR11) which says: "Land for the re-opening of Beeston Station will be safeguarded for passenger services and is identified on the proposals map". As the Local Plan is now adopted, more weight should be given to this policy.
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Photo: CPRE Cheshire Branch Ince Marshes - soon to be a massive Waste Recovery Park? |
Our main concern is that the massive scale of the proposed development would encourage and promote the importation of waste, not only from the North West Region but also from other parts of the UK and overseas by water, rail and road with problems of control and monitoring of the material and origin of the waste.
The Ince Marshes are a greenfield site. We believe the proposals would have an unacceptable visual impact on the important views and landscape and there would be a substantial reduction in the quantity of wildlife habitat and feeding grounds.
Increased heavy road traffic, increased odour and noise levels and emissions would have a harmful effect on nearby village, particularly Ince and Elton.
We are pleased that Cheshire County Council have refused the scheme, partly on the grounds that it is incompatible with the current Waste Management Plan, backing up the earlier opposition of Chester City Council and Ellesmere Port and Neston Borough Council.
We recommended that the position of the mini-roundabout should be considered temporary until a Development Brief is provided for the East and West station car parks. This Brief should, we believe, address the issue of increasing rail users' car parking and providing accommodation for increased bus services which have been identified by Cheshire County Council's report Future Operation of Bus Services from Chester Railway Station (June 2006). We strongly believe that there is an urgent need to recognise that additional space will be required to accommodate increased bus services and increased rail users' car parking.
We fully support the North West Regional Spatial Strategy's identification of Chester Station as a key Regional Transport Interchange and the Cheshire Structure Plan's policy for a new Transport Interchange at Chester Railway Station. We support the Government policy which promotes improved and increased car parking at railway stations to encourage more travel by rail for the major part of the journey as a more sustainable alternative to the car.
| West Cheshire and North East Wales Sub-regional Study - fundamentally flawed CPRE Cheshire Branch has produced a detailed critique of the evolving planning and economic strategy for the West Cheshire and North East Wales Sub-Region which it believes is fundamentally flawed. West Cheshire/North East Wales has been identified as one of the other key sub-regional areas for the purposes of the Regional Spatial Strategy, in addition to the ‘City Regions’. Written, in the main, by John Wesencraft, the Branch’s Planning Adviser, the critique maintains that the unsustainable commuting patterns identified between North East Wales and Chester and between Chester and farther afield would actually become worse if a ‘high economic growth’ strategy were adopted for this sub-region. It points out that the study work carried out by consultants to date has only looked at the identified sub-region as a single unit: it has neither examined the inter-relationship between the English and Welsh Districts it covers nor looked at the effects on the wider region of concentrating economic growth in this already ‘over-heated’ area. The submission made by CPRE Cheshire Branch can be viewed here. |
News and Events
The District produces a Newsletter at least once a year to keep all Members in the District up-to-date with local issues and news. Please click to see the newsletters for Autumn 2006 and Spring 2006.
How you can help
We welcome help on all fronts but some specific needs are: Minutes Secretary, Secretarial help (see below), letter writers, leaflet distributors
| Situation Open The Chester District of CPRE would particularly like to hear from a member living in or near the Upton area of Chester who may be able to provide the Planning Coordinator with secretarial assistance. The job would be confined to typing an average of about four letters per week from freehand drafts. It would be helpful if you were computer literate but this is not essential; an ability on an ordinary typewriter would still be most helpful. Please respond to the Branch Office in the first instance. |
Chairman: Vacant Secretary: Mrs J P Bond Treasurer: Mrs E Brookes
| Get Involved
... Do you live within the Congleton local authority area? Do you have some free time? Do you want to make a difference to your environment? If so, our Congleton District would like to hear from you. The District has an active group who work on planning issues in the area, but they feel that more new volunteers would help to re-invigorate their work. They are seeking a new Chair, who would take responsibility for preparing agendas and keeping meetings on track, a Secretary to deal with correspondence and take minutes, and any number of volunteers to help with tasks from scrutinising and responding to planning applications to arranging local events. Think you’d enjoy it? Contact the Cheshire Branch Office for more information. |
To contact the District Officers click here.
Meeting frequency and venue
Approximately every two months at CVS House Hope Street Sandbach - details from the Secretary.
Current issues/campaigns
| Scholar
Green plan spoils 50th anniversary Congleton CPRE was dismayed to learn of a proposal to develop Green Belt land at Scholar Green on the eve of the 50th anniversary of the Green Belt in early August. An application was submitted to Congleton Borough Council to build a new medical centre on an area of Green Belt land, which would be owned by the developer and leased back to the health service. While CPRE supports the improvement of community health-care facilities, any loss of designated land in this very narrow strip of Green Belt could open the back-door to less justifiable development, and Congleton CPRE has sought assurances that this will not be the case. The application has gone to Committee, and will then called in by the Secretary of State as a departure from the development plan. See our Press Releases page for more information. |
Quarry
on Congleton Cloud. This retrospective application to reopen quarrying
within the South Cheshire Green Belt, in an Area of Special County Landscape
Value and close to a Site of Biological Interest, has generated a lot of
local opposition. We have written to the County Council requesting
refusal. We have heard that the application was recommended for refusal
and understand that the application was actually withdrawn prior to determination
by the Environment Committee. We continue to oppose this application
and are attempting to obtain an update from CCC.
Kinderton Lodge Waste management facility. We believe that this ongoing application for a waste management facility at Kinderton would be environmentally damaging immediately around the proposed site and on the town of Middlewich in terms of traffic and its impact on the salt lagoons in Cledford Lane. The applicant has been slow to respond to CCC concerns and questions and we understand that the application has now been withdrawn so that a revised one, which does not entail the capping of the lagoons, may be submitted. We have not had confirmation of this from CCC but we will be keeping a close eye on the situation.
Sandbach Land north of Congleton Road – Garden Centre. This application on land in Open Countryside around Sandbach has yet to go before the Planning Committee. It would cover approximately 11 acres and have over 10000 square metres of building and provide up to 550 car park spaces if approved. We have made substantial representations to Congleton Borough Council urging refusal of this.
Sproston Animal Waste application. We have become involved in this application because it is inappropriate for the location. The proposed site is immediately adjacent to an organic dairy farm and is accessed via country lanes which are designated as being unsuitable for heavy goods traffic. The application was refused by the Vale Royal Planning Committee and the appeal was heard in mid-2004.
News and Events
Please contact us for the latest news and events in the District.
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Photo: CPRE Cheshire Branch Crewe and Nantwich countryside - well worth protecting |
Officers
Chairman: Rodney Copping Secretary: Gill Jeffries Treasurer: John Whitehead
To contact the District Officers click here.
Latest News
In July, we held a Parish Plans evening, with Cheshire Community Council’s Parish Plans Officer, Bron Kerrigan, as guest speaker. Parish Councils throughout the Cheshire CPRE area were invited by the Branch staff, and around 25 delegates were given the low-down on producing a good Parish Plan. Ms Kerrigan stressed the importance of involving the whole community from the outset, and her advice on sources of funding for the process and for specific projects was very useful. She highlighted the fact that the finished Plan is not just a document to keep on the shelf, but a way forward for the Parish, and a useful tool in seeking funding for future initiatives to benefit the community. Delegates had plenty of opportunity to ask questions and to share tips from their own experience. In view of its success, we are now exploring ideas for similar evenings, to be opened to other Districts and the public.
Newsletter
The District produces a newsletter for local members and other interested groups. The Spring 2006 version is here and the previous one is here .
Meeting frequency and venue
Our Meetings are normally held monthly - contact us via the link below for more details. The Hon Mrs Dunwoody is to meet with CPRE guests on Friday 2 March 2007 to discuss areas of common interest, in the light of her chairmanship of the Commons Select Committee on Transport and her involvement in issues concerning rural life and housing. Please contact Chair, Rodney Copping, if you would like to attend.
Current issues/campaigns
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Photo: CPRE Cheshire Branch Nantwich's Elizabethan Walled Garden |
The garden, on Kingsley Fields was part of larger gardens laid out by Richard Wilbraham after he built his family home, Townsend House, on the site in 1580 during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I. The walls contain original Elizabethan bricks and are supposed to have been repaired by the developers before building on Kingsley Fields.
In 1617 King James I was a guest in the house and stabled his horses on Kingsley Fields where the new roundabout now stands. He almost certainly walked in the gardens and dined in the banqueting house which would have been there. The old doorway had stood for over 400 years and was mysteriously knocked down just before building commenced on Kingsley Fields.
The Walled Garden Society has been fighting to save this special piece of our history for five years and wishes to restore it.
The Wilbrahams kept meticulous records of what they purchased for the house and gardens and we are fortunate that a Nantwich archivist has researched these.
The current planning status is that Crewe and Nantwich Borough Council refused a detailed planning application to build on the site on the basis of the proposal being too large. The Council did however approve an application to restore the garden walls. It is now expected that the developer will resubmit an application to develop the site. We all need to remain vigilant.
For more details see website www.nantwichwalledgarden.org.uk or contact Pat Fulford at secretary@nantwichwalledgarden.org.uk or by telephone on 01270 623575.
Newsletter
The District produces a newsletter for local members and other interested groups. The Spring 2006 version is here and the previous one is here .
How you can help
We are grateful for all offers of help, but in particular we need:
Views from Crewe and Nantwich
Some of our members have put pen to paper to share their personal views and experiences.
| Countryside Doomed? The countryside as it known and remembered today is unlikely to survive another generation unless immediate action is taken. As I see it, the most significant threats are:
The actions needed are:
The CPRE must actively support such actions and recognize that governments of all parties have failed over several decades and still appear reluctant to define and introduce polices which will reverse the decline of Rural England. Rodney Copping, Chairman of Crewe and Nantwich District CPRE |
A totally honest account about a young'un volunteering with CPRE Nature and Nurture and CPRE Psychologists understand two basic notions in the make-up of our dispositions - nature and nurture. If our environment is destroyed, a part of us can become destroyed and disheartened too. With the ambiguity of the Green Belt legislation, sometimes it takes a bit of the following:
...in order to conserve some of that pretty green stuff (I'm talking about grass) for our kids. Hang on, what am I getting at? Either a bad pun in the context of 'nature', or a rough analogy in outlining that CPRE is a charity that lives up to its word - Protecting Rural England. It's importand to nurture nature! Be an Activist The word 'activist' evokes a number of hackneyed images - the bearded eco-warrior, the punk that got cautioned for fighting for a better world, all the protest marches; the banners, posters, self-righteous pop stars, self-righteous politicians... Grassroots campaigning can take a number of different forms, and a lot happens below the glossy national radar screens. For me, an activist is any volunteer who pursues their beliefs or charity worker. You could define activists as dynamic people who support values they deem useful. We'd hope then that their values weren't self-serving but that's a totally different area of debate, which would involve me writing an essay, You don't want that. So, if a change is made in the world - big or small (yes, both the nouns 'change' and 'world' fit) - the activist is successful. Yet, it should not be about an unflinching enforcement of values. For CPRE, it's about direct action. It's about finding out what a community needs in order for its environment to thrive. More importantly, it's about protecting the autonomy of these communities. As modernity pushes on exhaustively, Compulsory Purchases and the like can so easily consume small villages and towns in England. Sometimes we don't even notice. We care, but we soon forget and then don't care. Do you reckon that's dangerous? Why did I get involved? I can make choices. I can: sit and complain all day about farmland disappearing underneath concrete; be apathetic with snap-shut eyes, hope it all goes away very soon, or actually do something. So I did. I looked for volunteer work and found CPRE. I had no idea about them until I used a well-known search engine, as with a lot of things! Anyway, finding like-minded people is very satisfying. Also, I like trees. YES, I like trees, I like fields, I like flowers and I like animals. I like old buildings, suburban 'wastelands', gardens, beauty spots, forests, and public property. Posterity should get to experience these breaks away from the grey too; I want to play a part in making sure that they do. Jane McConnell |
| Garden Grabbing It is not only the large and destructive invasions of open countryside by major developments which CPRE is fighting. Domestic gardens are also threatened. The infilling of gardens can be supported to some extent on the grounds that it is at least providing new dwellings (though these are seldom affordable) without sacrificing open countryside. However, the wholesale targeting of all gardens large enough to contain an extra house could prove disastrous to our environment and to the character and variety of our housing stock. The more obvious planning barriers of poor access and too close a proximity to neighbours seem inadequate to stop the erosion. Developers seem quite happy to demolish a perfectly good or even admirable house to gain access to a rear plot which will hold at least two dwellings, or maybe a block of flats. We do not see this as a natural process of change and development to meet need; it is mainly fuelled by speculation for financial gain. Gardens provide a vital environmental resource, contributing to natural drainage, air quality, biodiversity, the growing of fruit and vegetables and value to the street scene. Their loss is irreplaceable. We are urging the local authority to make greater use of their powers to consider inappropriate development where environmental quality and character are important considerations. They are of course handicapped by the government's unfortunate inclusion of domestic gardens in the definition of 'previously developed land'. Additional local policies in the form of Supplementary Planning Documents could be developed to give gardens more protection, and this we are urging the local authority to do. We also need more effective monitoring of the cumulative damage. Town and Village Design Statements and conservation areas can also be used to oppose unwelcome planning applications. Greville Watts - (01270) 812414 |
Officers
Chairman: Chris Shaw (acting) Secretary: Vacant Treasurer: S Ellwood
To contact the District Officers click here.
Meeting frequency and venue
Every 6 weeks at a member’s home.
Current issues/campaigns:
| Arley Estate – another
Combermere? The Estate wishes to create a Visitor Centre and Conference Centre in listed buildings, funded by building up to 13 new houses. CPRE in Macclesfield are supporting the reuse of existing buildings as a visitor centre, but opposing the housing scheme. |
Macclesfield Forest “Quiet Lanes” project gets under way
The concept of Quiet Lanes has the full backing of CPRE. Our philosophy is that the countryside should be enjoyed by everyone, and Quiet Lanes add an important safety factor to that enjoyment.
Following extensive CPRE lobbying, a public meeting was held last autumn at Langley, called by David Gennard of Cheshire County Council’s Engineering Department and Cedric Knipe, Strategic Planner at Macclesfield Borough Council. At that meeting, ideas were discussed and feedback analysed – all of which culminated in the displays now taking place. The views of local people were invited as part of the detailed planning.
Then in 2005, the Quiet Lanes in Macclesfield forest were introduced, with monitoring to continue through the early years. Modifications will then follow the initial experience. Such issues as speed limits, and parking in Langley, will be reviewed.
One point which needs emphasis is that all motorised traffic using the lanes in the Quiet Lanes will have to conform to the restrictions or else use alternative routes. The motor car has no priority whatsoever over the pedestrian, cyclist or horse-rider. This in itself should lead to quiet lanes! |
News and Events
Please contact us for the latest news and events in the District.
How you can help
We would welcome offers of help on all fronts but some specific needs are:
Secretary/assistant to write minutes and help with clerical work.
Officers
Chairman: George Beaumont Secretary: Michael Blank Treasurer: Maureen Walsh
To contact the District Officers please click here.
Meeting frequency and venue
The 2006 AGM was held on Wednesday 12th April 7.30 pm at the Dialstone Centre in Offerton
District Committee meetings are normally held bi-monthly at a member's home.
Current issues/campaigns
CPRE appeared at the public inquiry into the Stockport Unitary Development Plan Review, supporting Stockport MBC in their housing policies which are focused on regeneration, the phasing of house building and complying with Regional Planning Guidance house building figures. Participants in a housing roundtable on June 16th 2004 were invited by the inspector to address a series of questions. Our verbal comments were based on the written responses which you can view here
Cheshire Branch were rewarded for appearing at the Stockport Urban District Plan public inquiry in last summer. CPRE’s stance was similar to the one it took to Cheshire County’s Structure Plan, supporting the Council’s housing policies and objecting to the road-building proposals. The Inquiry Inspector, in her report, has agreed with CPRE that the strategic transport policies should be re-worded to encourage sustainable transport and only limited road-building - in line with national and regional policies. CPRE were also pleased the Inspector endorsed the Council’s proposal that there should be virtually no change to the Green Belt.
Stockport’s revised UDP, like the Cheshire Structure Plan, will have a limited life and will be replaced with sub-regional strategies and Local Development Documents.
News and Events
Please contact us for the latest news and events in the District.
Officers
Chairman: Dr. Michael Rose Secretary: Vacant Treasurer: A Harrison
To contact the District Officers please click here.
Meeting frequency and venue
Trafford District Committee meets at least every two months, at committee members' houses on a rotating basis. Extra meetings may be held for important items.
News and Events
| One of the winners of last year’s Cheshire CPRE Hedgerow Awards, Little Heath Farm, Dunham, has just been nominated for one of our ‘Buy Local’ Awards for the farm shop the owners have opened this year.
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Please contact us for the latest news and events in the District.
Current issues/campaigns
Recent successes include:
Fighting for the Green Belt - Together with other groups at the Public Inquiry, Trafford District successfully limited the development of office blocks in the Green Belt at Davenport Green, though this is an on-going threat.
Trafford is one of those CPRE Districts that has to constantly battle to protect its Green Belt land, but there was cause for celebration earlier this year, when a long fight came to an apparently successful conclusion. The proposed Trafford Interchange near Carrington was to take up 85 hectares of agricultural land in the Green Belt to create a massive freight interchange development. The North West Development Agency backed the plan, but objectors including CPRE were able to persuade Trafford Borough Council that there no “exceptional circumstances” exist to justify permitting the development in this location, and the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister informed Trafford that the proposal must be withdrawn.
The development has been under discussion for almost four years, and CPRE examined the proposal constructively, as road / rail interchanges can reduce the environmental impact of freight haulage, but this was simply in the wrong place. The Green Belt would have been fragmented, and countryside needlessly damaged when other more suitable sites are available for development.
Despite the Government’s instruction, the proposal had not been officially withdrawn at the time of going to press, but it seems it may have been overtaken by other development anyway, as the Port Salford interchange comes forward as a much more appropriate location.
Green fields saved from ‘inert’ waste - Trafford District has successfully supported local groups in preventing industrial development at Broadheath, the Tesco out-of-town development at Washway Road, Sale, and had input into Warrington District’s action to stop Peel Holdings turning green fields at Rixton on the banks of the Ship Canal next to a conservation area into a dump for "inert waste".
Recent issues, some of which will be ongoing for some time, are:
Green Belt at Carrington and Davenport Green and Broadheath,
Hedgerow and Tree conservation at Timperley and elsewhere
The Trafford Unitary Development Plan
Proposed new roads and bridges
The conservation area at Barton
Out of town shopping
Protecting parking for the Metro.
How you can help
We welcome help all forms of help. If you could help, please contact the District Chairman.
Currently there is no active committee in Vale Royal District but major issues, such as the proposal by Scottish Power to install a gas plant at Byley, have been dealt with by the Executive Committee member, Ken Parker, who has supported efforts by local action groups.
Ken would be delighted to hear from anyone interested in helping to re-launch a Vale Royal District.
To contact the District Representative click here.
| Second
gas plant for Byley? We were recently informed by the local press of a proposal for a second gas plant not far from the controversial site at Byley, where John Prescott’s office overturned an appeal ruling to force the Ł100m plant through in the teeth of massive local objection. Although the proposal involves below-ground storage facilities, it includes associated surface development, and will create a significant increase in traffic, damaging the air quality in an area not far from M6 junction 18 which is about to be declared an Air Quality Management Area. The area is not designated in the Local Plan for this sort of use, and the site falls within the Mersey Forest environmental area. |
A recent success: Mill Pool at Little Budworth to survive...
The Mill Pool, located in a very attractive area close to Little Budworth and Oulton Park, was threatened when Cheshire County Council issued a notice under the Reservoirs Act to the land owners instructing them to carry out immediate modifications to alleviate risk to public health.
To avoid the costs involved, the landowners proposed solve the problem by lowering the water level by 400mm, which would have resulted in the complete loss of the water forming the "Pool", thereby destroying this very natural and attractive landscaped area which affords easy access to the general public.
We made contact with the landowners’ agents on numerous occasions to express our grave concerns about their intentions and to see if an alternative solution could be considered. In fact an independent survey was carried out to ascertain the actual depth and quantity of water in the pool, and we are pleased to report that on the findings, the water only needed to be lowered by 50mm to take it outside the requirements of the Reservoirs Act.
The water level has now been lowered by 50mm. This has not affected the visual appearance of the area, and this beautiful landscape has been retained for our enjoyment. |
… but 11-storey-height wind turbines are proposed on Cheshire Plain ...
We are very concerned to hear that an application will shortly be made to Vale Royal Borough Council for the erection of three wind turbines each 100m high on the Cheshire Plain close to the villages of Tarporley and Eaton.
These turbines each equivalent in height to an 11 storey tower block will be very intrusive on this very open, unspoilt countryside, and will be visible from as far away as the Peak District National Park 30 miles away to the east and the Peckforton Hills to the west. The locations of these monstrous structures must be carefully considered, and not be allowed to spoil our lovely landscapes.
If this development proves to be economic in this location, then we believe many more will be built on this vast open and very visible area of the Cheshire Plain. We intend to fight this and any other proposal which we believe will seriously spoil the countryside. |
… not once, but twiceCPRE in Vale Royal is also facing the prospect of turbines of 125m high at Aston. That’s the height of Blackpool Tower. An application has been submitted to Vale Royal Borough Council by Tegni Cymru Cyf for four 125 m high turbines at Aston Grange Farm near Frodsham. The development would also include a substation, associated electrical and communication cables, an anemometer mast and new site access roads. CPRE is very much in favour of moving to renewable energy, but in common with many energy professionals, we are concerned that wind power may be seen as the only solution, and that turbines and the associated power-station infrastructure could be rushed through without the appropriate research in order to meet renewable energy targets. Apart from their impact on the landscape, the safety and efficiency of on-shore turbines are increasingly coming into question, even in Scandinavia and Germany where they initially found great favour. If they later prove to be enormous white elephants, we will have lost valued landscapes for nothing, as most contracts do not arrange for their removal at the end of their useful lives, and the development is not simply a number of turbines, but includes a significant amount of associated works. |
Officers
Chairman: Vacant Secretary: Jacqui Johnson Treasurer: Judith Walker Minutes Secretary: Vacant
To contact the District Officers please click here.
Meeting frequency and venue
Warrington District Committee meets when necessary, usually at Grappenhall and Thelwall Parish Council Office.
A key subject for the forthcoming meetings will be draft modifications to the Unitary Development Plan.
| If you are interested in helping with the Landscape Character Assessment project, in being involved in our meetings, or contributing to our work in any way, let us know – we would be very pleased to welcome you. |
If you are interested in getting involved, please contact the Cheshire Branch office.
Current issues/campaigns
The Warrington Unitary Development Plan was formally adopted by our Borough Council in January, but we then had to wait 6 weeks to see if there were any legal challenges. There were two, one of which has since been withdrawn.
Manchester City Council objected to Omega, the strategic employment site on the old Burtonwood base, because they believe it will affect regeneration in the cities. They withdrew the challenge when English Partnerships (who own the site) agreed to review the impacts of Omega on city centres for future stages of development.
The second challenge was with respect to Peel Hall, one of the areas returned to the Green Belt by the Borough Council at the Revised Draft stage. This issue was addressed by the UDP Inquiry Inspector, who agreed it should be Green Belt. (See volume 1 of the Inspector’s Report, pp 78-9).
The UDP documents can be consulted in libraries, and on www.warrington.gov.uk (click on Council then Planning then Latest UDP News).
We are waiting for the new map of Warrington showing the Adopted Green Belt Boundaries, so that we can arrange our next meeting and send out more details to members.
A planning application for the Parkside Colliery site is expected soon.
We supported the Borough Council’s decision to refuse the detailed application for the Longbutt Lane site in Lymm, however this was approved on appeal.
The proposals for a Healthcare Waste Facility on Winwick Lane are going to Inquiry. We have put forward an objection to the proposal outlining our concerns.
As part of CPRE’s North West Regional Group, and as members of waste groups in the area, we are currently preparing comments on the Draft Regional Spatial Strategy and the relevant waste policies - again, there will be more detail in the notice for our next meeting.
Now that we have a Green Belt, we decided at our last meeting that we become a part of the CPRE national campaign for Landscape Character Assessment – making a change from our usual subject of planning policy!
News and Events
| A new master plan
has been put forward for a rail freight interchange at the Parkside Colliery
site affecting a large area of Green Belt. The proposed site sits
astride the M6 just north of junction 22, which would be altered as part
of the scheme. Though the new plans propose a dedicated access road
connecting to Junction 22, and high quality there would still be impacts
on local roads. Warrington CPRE and Cheshire’s Transport Campaign
Group are looking closely at road access proposals. A large rail freight interchange at Ditton which will impact on a big wedge of Green Belt has been given approval through the Halton UDP process. Consultation by Halton Borough Council on a Supplementary Planning Document for the site is underway, closing on 15th December. |
Please contact us for the other latest news and events in the District.
Halton District
There is currently no separate District Committee for Halton. Warrington District endeavour to cover major planning issues but would appreciate local help on the ground. If you would like to help, contact Cheshire branch office.
Also, there is a major issue which is concerning CPRE: the proposal to build a massive new road bridge - the New Mersey Crossing - at a cost of a third of a billion pounds between Runcorn and Widnes. CPRE believes this would be environmentally and socially unsustainable. (The new bridge would be tolled in order to pay for it and therefore the existing Silver Jubilee Bridge would also be tolled). Huge volumes of extra through-traffic would be attracted to route through Halton to access and egress the south side of Liverpool, further affecting the air quality in Runcorn and Widnes.
CPRE would rather see local authority efforts and any available funding focused on high quality urban regeneration projects in Halton rather than on this scheme which it believes would bring minimal benefit to the local area.
If you wish to become involved in opposing this project, please contact the Chairman of the Branch's Transport Campaign.
The Wirral Society is the Wirral District of CPRE but is also an independent body/charity in its own right.
| How the Wirral got its name ... Did you know that the peninsula’s name comes from wir, the Anglo-Saxon word for the myrtle trees that used to grow there in abundance? Around 200 members learnt this and much more at the Society’s recent AGM, which featured an illustrated talk by John Moffat on ‘Trees of Wirral’. Mr Moffat, a tree expert, belongs to the Friends of Flaybrick, a small charity caring for the trees and grounds of Flaybrick cemetery, an important example of the Victorian necropolis. The Wirral Society has given the project its support. |
Officers
Chairman: Rod Tann Secretary: David Casement Treasurer: Peter Bowler
To contact the District Officers click here.
Meeting frequency and venue
Monthly at St John’s Church Hall, Meols, Wirral
Latest News
| CPRE
on the Wirral Responds to Airport expansion plan The Wirral Society, which takes care of CPRE’s concerns on the Wirral Peninsula, has made a formal objection to plans for expanding Liverpool John Lennon Airport. While accepting that the convenience of air travel makes it an increasingly popular choice, the Society has supported comments made by Friends of the Earth, opposing the expansion of operations at Liverpool. On the positive side, the airport company’s efforts to embrace a carbon reduction scheme by increasing tree planting in the Mersey Forest, and also its involvement in the sustainable strategy for aviation, were welcomed, but grave concerns were expressed about increased noise levels. The noise currently experienced over the Peninsula (especially mid and south Wirral), particularly during 'unsocial hours', is already an increasingly unwanted and intrusive factor for those living and working near to and under flight paths. This intrusion also affects those who go out into Wirral's countryside, in search of some respite from the pressures of everyday life The Wirral Society recognises that the proposed expansion is closely linked with the economic prosperity of the area. However, they believe the situation described above can only get worse, as it is highly unlikely that either aircraft engines will be made appreciably less noisy than they are at present, or that larger aircraft will significantly reduce the number of movements. On balance, the Society believes the negative effects of the proposed expansion on a wide area of the Wirral and West Cheshire are a high price to pay for any benefits that may accrue. |
Please contact us for the other latest news and events in the District.
Current issues/campaigns
Application of the Regional Planning Guidance to East Wirral
Future use of former Bidston Observatory
The problem of eyesores especially advertisements on roundabouts
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Community Involvement In common with our CPRE colleagues in other parts of Cheshire, we have been especially interested in the concept of widening community involvement in planning, raised by the Statement of Community Involvement in the new Local Development Framework, and have made several suggestions to Ellesmere Port and Neston BC and Wirral MBC to improve this. Enabling and encouraging people to play a part in shaping their community goes hand-in-hand with valuing their countryside, a major theme in Cheshire CPRE’s work this year. And we have identified several steps we believe would made it easier for people to engage in what can seem at first a daunting topic. Firstly, we expect the councils to ensure engagement at key stages in the planning development process, making members of communities really feel they are working in partnership with planners. Taking the time to explain background issues, and offering training / awareness sessions would create more effective partners. We have asked that applications and site visits are well-publicised to make involvement easier, and that reports to committees include an indication of how comments made by individuals and groups were taken into consideration, to show how involvement has played its part. |
Please contact us for the other latest news and events in the District.
Events
2 W Victor Smith Lectures (in Jan & Feb)
Annual Meeting & W. Victor Smith Lecture - normally in October
How you can help
We are pleased to accept help in many areas, but some specific current needs are:
A representative to cover the Ellesmere Port area to act as ‘Planning Liaison’
A person to take an interest in tree-related matters
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Victoria Buildings Lewin Street Middlewich Cheshire CW10 9AT Tel/Fax: 01606 835046 E-mail: info@cprecheshire.org.uk |
President: Lord Grey of Codnor Patron: HM The Queen Registered Charity No. 248304 |
