News ans Issues

New Risk to Wirral Green Belt

Message from Steve Anderson Chair of Heswall Society 5th August 2024

You will no doubt have heard about the Government’s plan to tackle the shortage of housing, particularly affordable homes.

On July 30, the Deputy Prime Minister and Secretary of State for Housing, Communities & Local Government (Rt Hon Angela Rayner MP)
outlined the Government’s proposed approach to revising the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) in order to achieve sustainable growth in the planning system in England.

Corresponding with this announcement there is now an eight-week consultation stage that started immediately and will end at 11:45 on Tuesday, September 24th 2024.

Details of the proposed changes and the consultation can be found using the link Proposed Changes to NPPF
.
The proposed changes include:

Making the standard method for assessing housing needs mandatory.
Implementing a new standard method and calculation to ensure local plans are ambitious enough to support the Government’s manifesto commitment of 1.5 million new homes in this Parliament.
Identifying ‘grey belt’ land within the existing Green Belt.

Over the next few weeks, the Heswall Society will be working with the Wirral Green Space Alliance (WGSA) to develop a response to this consultation. It is clear however, that if these changes were to take place then the calculated housing need for Wirral would be significantly increased over the figure in the current Local Plan (which we already believe is over inflated).

In her note to all Local Authorities in England, the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities & Local Government indicated that:
“For plans at examination this means allowing them to continue, although where there is a significant gap between the plan
and the new local housing need figure, we will expect authorities to begin a plan immediately in the new system”.

The Main Modifications to the current draft Local Plan being progressed by the Council and required by the examiners to satisfy them that the Plan is sound remains overdue. Even with this Plan eventually being agreed, however, the WGSA and others have a deep concern that the Council is not progressing
nor has the appropriate personnel with the necessary experience to progress the regeneration requirements in the Local Plan.

Thus, our Green Belt remains at risk through this, let alone these proposed changes to the NPPF which will only further increase this risk to Wirral’s precious Green Belt.

I will keep you informed as the Society develops its considered response to the current consultation on the proposed changes to the NPPF and, of course,
if any further information regarding the status of Wirral’s draft Local Plan is obtained.

Dawstone Park is Under Threat

The future of Dawstone Park is under treat. The Friends of Dawstone Park was set up in April 2015 to ensure the flowers beds in the Park were maintained as the Council was no longer prepared to do this. Over the past 9 years the committee has been largely unchanged. New volunteers are now needed to continue the work.

To find out how you can help and what’s involved please contact Paul Leidecker on 0151 342 8570 or via email [email protected]

Solar Panels in Conservation Areas

Wirral Council has recently updated its policy on Solar Panels in Conservation Areas - including, of course, Gayton and Lower Heswall Village. See Details

Heswall Walks

The second of four walks in and around Heswall, originally published by Heswall Society in March 1989, is now reproduced on this website along with the first (see below). The series of four walks was initiated by a committee lead by Hugh Roper, Poppy Agnew, a local artist, and Ken Burnley, a well-known Wirral local historian and author. With the involvement of other committee members, publication of the walks happened over the course of ten years, and it's our intention to reproduce all of them via our website in due course.

The second walk starts from the Glegg Arms. It passes through the historic core of Gayton to the meadows alongside the River Dee, returning, via the Lower Village, over the last remnant of the 'black heathland' (The Beacons) to the starting point.

There is also a "Treasure Hunt" suitable for primary school children accompanied by an adult.

Free Down Loads

Public Footpaths and Bridleways

The Government’s deadline to register historic paths by 2026 (that members were alerted to) was repealed by DEFRA in March 2022 following the Welsh government’s lead. Public rights of way that did not appear on the Council's definitive map by 1 January 2026 had been at risk of being lost forever.
Nonetheless, everyone is encouraged to look at the definitive map and bring attention to any known footpaths and public rights of way that are not shown. Once recorded as rights of way, and added to the definitive map, paths are protected under law for people to use.
For more information on this, including a link to the definitive map, and how you can help,
Click here.

The Outdoor Gym

The Outdoor Gym Due to the recent council elections and the Council officers busy dealing with the Local Plan examination and Leverhulme Estates inquiry, there has been no further progress at the time of writing. The design has been agreed with the Council officers (a surfaced pad containing four items of fitness equipment) as has the position on the Puddydale. The next steps are to finalise costs and raise the required 4 amount of money. Our Councillors remain confident that the gym will be in place by the end of the year

Responding to Wirral Green Belt Threat

The consultation is in progress and the Heswall Society encourages local residents to respond. The deadline is 11.45pm on Tuesday 24 September 2024. This is the link to respond.

Attached are two documents to help with your response. Guidance on how to respond to Question 15 and our response to the other questions.

Key points are:

The Standard Method for Calculating Housing Need should be based on the most up to date census information and population / household projections NOT existing housing stock
Basing the standard method on housing stock is a “one size fits all”, arbitrary, unfairly allocated method which is not based on actual need.
Basing the Standard Method on existing housing stock is “overly simplistic” and does not target homes where they are needed.
The proposed Standard Method, based on existing housing stock, will not direct house building where it is actually needed. For example London, which has the worst housing crisis in the UK, will see its actual target drop by 18000
Wirral’s population grew by just 411 between 2011 and 2021, yet the proposed Standard Method will see Wirral required to build 28000 extra houses over the 16 year Local Plan period, increasing the population by 60,000 which is a 20% increase in population. Where will these extra people come from? How will these people be employed? How will the infrastructure be provided for 60,000 extra people?
Basing the Standard Methodology on existing housing stock will not target homes where they are ACTUALLY needed and will increase the likelihood of building on Greenbelt causing massive, irreversible, environmental damage at a time of Climate and Ecological emergency
Basing the Standard Methodology on existing house stock will encourage developers to target Green Belt and avoid regenerating the areas where housing need is greatest
Basing the Standard Methodology on existing housing stock will allow Developers to target food producing farmland which will be needed to produce food, particularly as climate change accelerates. This land is needed to mitigate against floods and drought and to provide carbon sinks.

Heswall in Bloom Grant Application

The Heswall in Bloom team are planning to create two large mixed shrub and flower beds in front of the fire station (see picture above).
This planting will provide nectar and pollen across the full Feb - Nov pollinator season and provide an enriched habitat to support wildlife.
The Team has applied for a £2000 grant from the Liverpool City Region. To be successful we need to raise pledges from the public for a minimum of £500 through the spacehive crowdfunding platform.
Should you wish to support this project you can like and / or pledge a donation using the project funding page that can be accessed via the following link: Heswall Firestation Pollinator Garden.
Donations need to be in by September 16. If the grant isn’t awarded, then the pledged money will not be taken.

Appeal at Apple Tree Cottage Dismissed

Good news: the appeal on the first application for flats at Apple Tree Cottage has been robustly dismissed, on grounds which should be equally applicable to the second (current ) application still being assessed by the LPA. Decision below.

The proposal would fail to preserve, and much less enhance, the character or appearance of the conservation area and would therefore fail to satisfy the weighty statutory requirement of The Act. It would also be contrary to Policy CH2 of the Wirral Unitary Development Plan (UDP) which seeks to preserve the distinctive characteristics of the area, the general design and layout of the area, and the character and setting of period buildings which make a positive contribution to the conservation area. It would also be contrary to Policy HS4 which amongst other things requires development to be of a scale which relates well to surrounding property with particular regard to its form.

Heswall Dales

Wirral Borough Council have recently published a Heswall Dales Management Plan 2020-2022. This plan is intended to provide a framework for the development and improvement of Heswall Dales.

Heswall in Bloom. Planting in the Rain!

Undeterred by heavy rain the Heswall in Bloom volunteers do their bit to keep our Wirral home special. To find out more about Heswall in Bloom see their Facebook Page

Castle Buildings Flower Beds

The Heswall Society/Heswall in Bloom are hugely grateful to The Mill Shop, Claire House, Hallmark and Cain of Heswall who have each agreed to 'Adopt a Bed' outside their shops in Castle Buildings. The beds are planted and maintained throughout the year by volunteer members of the Society, lead by Angie Mounsey.

One of the major difficulties we face is keeping the beds adequately watered, particularly during dry spells, without a readily available tap! Because of this, it has been necessary for volunteers to bring large quantities of water with them by car which can be extremely onerous. Now, by adopting the various flower beds, these four businesses have very kindly agreed to share the job of watering between them, for which the Society is immensely grateful and has donated some bright red watering cans! Hopefully all those who enjoy the flower beds will also show these businesses how much their work is valued.