Proposed Development of Folly Garden
June 2010
The Council has still not issued a decision allowing this development to proceed.
February 2010
At its meeting on 24 February, the Planning Committee of South Oxfordshire District Council voted in favour of the Planning Application for this development , subject to 27 conditions.
An indication of the visual impact of the buildings proposed for the southern part of the Folly Garden is provided by these 'before-and-after' pictures:
Artist's Impression of the Location of the Proposed Buildings as seen from the Village Green
November 2009
The following statement by the Conservation Group Committee was submitted to South Oxfordshire District Council on 3 November 2009:
Planning Application PO9/E0991
The Committee of the Woodcote Conservation Group would like to register its concerns about the above Planning Application. *
Woodcote has a long history of wide consultation on village matters, and villagers’ views have been expressed in our three Village Appraisals, the first in 1983, and latterly in the Woodcote Parish Plan of 2007. Indeed, the WCG was founded in 2000 in response to the village's wishes expressed in the previous year’s Woodcote Appraisal.
. . . the people of Woodcote are particularly attached to [their] natural environment - both outside and inside the village - and are determined that it should be protected and preserved. These sentiments are of long standing: the three previous Village Appraisals of 1983, 1990, and 1999 all showed almost unanimous appreciation of Woodcote's open spaces and rural surroundings. By 2006 the proportion of respondents saying they wanted to protect the countryside around the village and the natural features within it had actually risen by one percentage point over the two previous Appraisals - from 98% to almost 99%! Not surprisingly, this figure represents by far the highest positive response to any question asked in the whole survey (Woodcote Parish Plan 2007:
<http://www.woodcote-online.co.uk/docs/wppnaturalenvironment.pdf>).
1. The oak avenue
The oak avenue is an extremely important landscape feature, a skyline feature for a great part of the village. It can be seen by all users of the recreation ground in the centre of the village, from where it forms a background to the Red Lion and neighbouring houses. It screens the development behind it and provides protection from some of the noise from the main road through the village.
We note with concern the report of the Forestry Officer, and concur with his findings that the development as it exists in the plans before us is unsustainable. We accept his professional findings concerning damage to the roots of trees in the oak avenue and agree that dwellings so close to the canopy will suffer from loss of light, leading to demands for pruning and felling. Some future residents might not enjoy living in such very close proximity to an active rookery and this could lead to conflict. We are also concerned that the responsibility for the management of the avenue has apparently not yet been resolved.
The Forestry Officer predicts the eventual loss of the avenue. Even if this is unduly pessimistic, putting this landscape feature at risk is directly contrary to policies outlined in the South Oxfordshire Local Plan 2011, especially:
Planning Policy C1ii, concerning Landscape Character:
C1: The conservation and if possible enhancement of the landscape of the district will be sought. Development that would adversely affect the distinctive features of the landscape character areas will not be permitted.
Where development is acceptable in principle it should . . .
Ii . . . protect important local features . . .
Planning Policy C2, concerning Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty:
C2, 3.11: While the Council will make every effort to accommodate pressures for change and development, the conservation and enhancement of the Areas’ outstanding visual character will take priority.
Planning Policy C4, concerning the Landscape Setting of Settlements:
C4: Development which would damage the attractive landscape setting of the settlements of the district will not be permitted. The effect of any proposal on important local landscape features which contribute to the visual and historic character and appearance of a settlement will be considered.
Planning Policy C9, concerning Landscape Features:
C9: Any development that would cause the loss of landscape features will not be . . . permitted where those features make an important contribution to the local scene, and/or provide all or part of an important wildlife habitat . . . Where features are retained within the development site, conditions will be used to ensure that they are protected during development and have sufficient space to ensure their survival after development.
2. Loss of habitat
We are also concerned about the loss of habitat. The oak avenue is a long-standing active rookery. Its understorey and the other scrub and trees on the Folly land provide nesting sites for large numbers of birds and a wide range of bird species, including the Biodiversity Action Plan species the Song Thrush. The site is a hunting ground for large numbers of bats, some of which nest on the nearby church. The rough grassland will be home to many voles and shrews, food for creatures higher up the food chain. The previous owners, who had lived there since 1974, used no herbicides, pesticides or chemical fertilizers. Before that, two elderly sisters had for decades managed the grounds only very lightly, so it is possible that this land has never been subject to chemical management. Given this, we would recommend a detailed invertebrate survey.
While accepting that The Folly is not a designated site and may not be home to endangered species, we would argue that this relatively large site in the middle of the village provides for very many common and some not so common species, and as such is valuable in itself. In this connection we note that only a few days ago the RSPB’s report ‘The State of the UK’s Birds, 2008’ showed that while we are beginning to be successful in increasing the numbers of rare birds, common ones are still in decline (<http://www.rspb.org.uk/Images/SUKB_tcm9-231778.pdf>).
3. Biodiversity
We are not convinced that there would be any net gain to the environment arising from this development, notwithstanding the plans for mitigation of habitat loss. On the contrary, we feel that overall it will lead to a loss of biodiversity in the area.
Planning Policy C5, concerning Biodiversity:
C5, 3.22: Traditionally planning for biodiversity has focused on the protection of designated sites and the protection of endangered species. Whilst this is extremely important, the Government recognises that planning needs to take a widened perspective of biodiversity. This includes seeking opportunities to reverse habitat fragmentation through the positive management of features of the landscape.
Planning Policy C6, concerning Biodiversity Conservation:
C6 In considering proposals for development, the maintenance and enhancement of the biodiversity resource of the district will be sought. Full account of the effects on development on wildlife will be taken.
C6, 3.25: Even when the loss of countryside or open land is relatively small it is important to take full account of its effects upon biodiversity. The cumulative effect of a number of small-scale developments may seriously damage the integrity of habitats or habitat networks.
We would be grateful for these comments to be taken into consideration in any further discussion of this Application.
John Sandford
Chair, Woodcote Conservation Group
*To avoid a potential conflict of interests, one member of the Committee – Mrs Karen Woolley – has not been involved in the formulation or submission of this statement.