Plan dropped for massive wind-turbines in Cumbrian beauty-spot

Banks Renewables has abandoned its plan to build three massive 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. The Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, Eric Pickles, called in the application last March after South…

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Changes to judicial review process

New civil procedure court rules have been introduced for England and Wales for judicial review. Judicial review is the process of challenging the lawfulness of decisions of public authorities and the application for permission for judicial review has to be made within time limits set by the Court Rules. There is now a six week…

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Pub extension could threaten beauty-spot Chilterns common

We have objected to a planning appeal which could threaten the lovely Ibstone Common in the Chilterns Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty in Bucks. The owners of the Fox public house in Ibstone applied to Wycombe District Council for permission to extend the premises, including a basement function-suite with capacity for 150 people. The council…

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Waverley Council to rethink future of Haslemere Common

We are delighted that Waverly Borough Council has decided to defer plans to refurbish Wey Hill Fairground common at Haslemere in Surrey. The land is currently used as a car-park. The council applied for consent for works on the common, under section 38 of the Commons Act 2006. We and many others, including the Haslemere…

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We appoint new treasurer

We are delighted to announce the appointment of Steve Warr as Treasurer and Trustee of the Open Spaces Society. Steve is a Chartered Accountant who spent his career in the banking industry. He brings considerable experience of operating at Board level to the role of Treasurer. He lives in north Oxfordshire and has had an…

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Outdoor organisations call on MPs and peers to “champion outdoor recreation” for the good of the nation

Ten leading outdoor organisations are joining together in Westminster today (11 June) to urge parliamentarians to factor the benefits of outdoor recreation into their manifestos and policies ahead of the next general election. The event, organised by the British Mountaineering Council (BMC) and the All Party Parliamentary Group for Mountaineering, co-chaired by David Rutley MP…

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Residents of Westgate-on-Sea, Kent, win new green

Residents of Westgate-on-Sea, near Margate in Kent, have won a new village green, following four years of hard work and a public inquiry. The 2.44-acre field, consisting of rough grass with a wooded perimeter, has been enjoyed by local people for informal recreation since the end of the war. Sited north of Ursuline Drive, the…

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The tide has turned

Our general secretary, Kate Ashbrook, writes about worrying changes in legal opinion. Fifteen years ago the Sunningwell case clarified the law on village greens in the public interest. Since then a series of cases has gone the same way—but now the tide has turned. Already this year we have had three judgments about greens in…

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Beauty-spot wind-turbine slated

We have added our voice to objectors to a 40-metre-high wind turbine in the Forest of Bowland Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. The turbine is proposed at Israel Farm, Lawkland, four miles west of Settle.  Other objectors include CPRE Craven and Lawkland Parish Council. The Forest of Bowland Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty should be…

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