CPRE Oxfordshire: Warneford Meadow must be saved

25 January 2008. Town Green inquiry adjourned till 19th May.

The Warneford Meadow Town Green Inquiry, which began on 18 January and lasted for 6 days, has been adjourned till 19th May and is expected to gone on for another 3 days.

Sietske Boeles of Friends of Warneford Meadow said: ‘The Inquiry ended on a positive note. The Inspector is now very much aware that the NHS presented the opposite case at the definitive Footpath Inquiry in 2000 when they argued that the whole site was used freely and indiscriminately for recreation by many local people.’

An outcome is not expected till late Summer.

For further information contact FOWM at email: FOWM@btinternet.com or see their website: http://www.friendsofwarnefordmeadow.org.uk

Friends of Warneford Meadow appeal for funds!

CPRE Oxfordshire appeals to all those who want to see Warneford Meadow protected for posterity to make a generous donation to the Friends of Warneford Meadow appeal. It is estimated that the total legal costs for preparing and defending the application will be £37,000. To date FOWM have raised £20,000, but they urgently need a further £17,000.

Donations of less than £100 can be made to Friends of Warneford Meadow, c/o David Sutton, 12 Hill Top Road, Oxford, OX4 1PB. Contact: 01865 248847. If you are able to make a donation of more than £100, the value of your donation can be increased by 28% through Gift Aid. Donations can also be made through CPRE Oxfordshire Branch.

12 September 2007. Town Green inquiry adjourned

The town green inquiry opened on Monday 8 October. Ross Crail, barrister for the residents, said: "The evidence is that there was a sufficient amount of indulging in sports and past-times over the whole of the meadow, to justify registration." (Oxford Mail).

During the week, more than twenty witnesses were cross-examined. The counsel for the NHS, Philip Petchey, summarised the nature of the questioning saying that "we grind the detail very small" in this type of inquiry. Petchey was part of the ten-strong NHS team, which included OBMHT chief executive Julie Waldron and eight planners and advisers.

Ross Crail said the bundle of evidence submitted by the NHS, which is opposing the town green application, contained a statistical survey of the use of the meadow. The inquiry heard that expert advice given to Ms Crail about the methods used by the survey and its conclusions could be challenged as flawed (Oxford Mail). As a result, the inquiry has been adjourned until January.

8 September 2007: Warneford Meadow Town Green Appeal

Warneford Meadow town green inquiry. From October 8–12th Vivian Chapman QC will chair an inquiry in Oxford Town Hall to determine the application to have the meadow designated as a Town Green. The main opponent will be the NHS which owns the land . Paul Deluce would like to hear from anyone in the local area who has regularly used the meadow, in the present or past, for recreation or exercise, for example: dog walkers, birdwatchers, fruit pickers, kite flyers, hide and seekers, picnickers etc. Photographic evidence is also very important.

Paul is also seeking assistance in paying for the legal costs, which are estimated at £20,000. If anyone is able to help, please contact Sietske Boeles, 108 Southfield Road (Tel: 01865 728153) or email fowm@btinternet.com for further details. Gift Aid available for donations over £100.

June 2007: The Proposals go to Appeal

The planning applications from the Health Trusts were considered by the Strategic Development Control Committee of Oxford City Council on 25 April. Although city planners recommended that the application was accepted in principle, SDCC refused to consider the application. As a result, the Health Trusts have lodged an appeal with the Planning Inspectorate (Oxford Mail).

Andy Boddington said "The proposals that were put to the strategic development control committee were not fit for approval. The trust is just wasting NHS money by taking them to appeal at this stage".

More on the appeal, including CPRE's objection


Wet spring at Warneford Meadow		Dry spring at Warneford Meadow

The Battle for Warneford Meadow

Warneford Meadow is a tranquil space close to the heart of Oxford, yet rural in character. The Meadow is more than area of rough pasture; for residents and wildlife it is a vital space within a crowded city. CPRE Oxfordshire has objected to the developments proposed by the Oxfordshire & Buckinghamshire Mental Health Partnership NHS Trust. The Health Trust plans to sell the land with planning permission rather than develop it itself; its sole aim is to raise income. The Warneford Hospital land is valued at £30.9m, though it is not clear whether this figure assumes planning permission is granted.

CPRE has for many years been campaigning to save green spaces within the city of Oxford. A telephone call from one of our city members brought us into a new campaign.

Warneford Meadow is one of the hidden secrets of the city. Five hectares of unkempt pasture are bounded by a wildlife corridor and a scruffy orchard. It is a meadow that is well used but not trampled or manicured. And until recently it was not maltreated. Now development encroaches it from every direction and its very existence is under threat.

That threat comes from the National Health Service, which has submitted two outline planning applications for three potential uses of the site. The Oxfordshire & Buckinghamshire Mental Health Partnership NHS Trust is seeking to gain permission for accommodation for 2,000 Oxford Brookes students. Or perhaps, it suggests, the site might be suitable for key worker housing, or a research facility. The new use of the site is of little concern to the Trust, its only aim is to maximise the value of the site before sale to a developer.

Although the profits from the sale will go to a good cause, that is no excuse for destroying a valued landscape. Along with the newly formed group, Friends of Warneford Meadow, and local residents we have objected to the proposals because:

The development will result in significant loss of green and tranquil space within the City of Oxford.

The scale of the development is such that the whole Meadow, and its adjacent wooded boundaries, will be dominated by light and noise pollution.

The substantial loss of unkempt meadow will have a serious impact on Warneford Meadow's role as a wildlife corridor.

Support for city fields like Warneford Meadow comes from an unlikely source. In her report on land use planning, Kate Barker said: "It is extremely important that the social and environmental value of open urban land such as parks, playing fields and other recreation areas—land which is highly valued by the community—should be factored in to decision-making, so that it is not subject to development pressure".

The Proposals

The Oxford City Council website allows you to view planning applications online: http://uniformpublicaccess.oxford.gov.uk/publicaccess/default.aspx. The planning application reference numbers for the Warneford Meadow developments are 06/01559/OUT and 06/01560/OUT.

CPRE Objection

Warneford Meadow: 06/01559/OUT

We are concerned that the Design Statement is incomplete. Specifically only six development principles are stated in paragraph 2.5, against the nine referred to in the text and Figure 5. This lack of information has hampered our response. Given this flaw in the Design Statement, we request that Oxford City Council extend the consultation period on this application, so that further information can be supplied to ourselves and other interested parties.

In the interim, we make six objections to the proposals:

1) The development will result in significant loss of green and tranquil space within the City of Oxford.

2) The scale of the development is such that the whole Meadow, and its adjacent wooded boundaries, will be dominated by light and noise pollution. The urbanisation of the footpath will add to this. It is disingenuous of the Design Statement to quantify the development as 53% of the site, when the whole site area will be affected. The percentage stated does not seem to include the footpath "improvement" and the practical total perhaps is significantly above the 50% specified in the Local Plan.

3) The hardening and urbanisation of the footpath to take increased pedestrian and cycle traffic will detract from the rural character and tranquillity of the Meadow.

4) The Design Statement over-emphasises the proposed central open space, which is small and provides no substitute for the openness of the Meadow.

5) The proposal is to erect the tallest buildings on the south-west edge of the site. These will overlook and dominate the wild hedgerow and footpath, reducing their value as tranquil and green spaces.

6) The substantial loss of unkempt meadow will have a serious impact on Warneford Meadow's role as a wildlife corridor. Such corridors need a variety of habitats, not just woodland and hedgerows. The pressure of so many people living adjacent to the remaining rough pasture will severely erode it, as they use the space for walking, exercising dogs, sunbathing, etc. The long-term pressure will be to manage and manicure the pasture, with a resulting loss of biodiversity.

We oppose the development on the six grounds above and believe that the loss of Warneford Meadow will be a loss to Oxford City as a whole.

Earlier News

17 May. Health benefit of green space. Letter to the Oxford Mail.
11 May. Meadow housing refusal goes to appeal (Oxford Mail)
25 April. The City's main planning committee refuses to consider the proposals to develop the meadow.
25 April. Warneford Meadow at SDCC: "possibly the oddest decision ever to be put to an Oxford planning committee"
16 March. MP Andrew Smith asked where money from the Meadow will go (Oxford Times)
10 February. Oxford Brookes criticised over Warneford Meadow
February 2007.Oxford. As cruel as it is beautiful: the battle for Warneford Meadow
25 January 2007.Where will the proceeds from sale go? Not perhaps to Warneford Hospital
25 January 2007.Health Trusts ask for the decision on Warneford Meadow to be delayed
24 January 2007.BBOWT publish "position statement" on Warneford Meadow
23 January 2007. The North East Area Committee of Oxford City Council says reject the proposals
November 2006. CPRE Rights of Way Convenor objects to the proposed development of Warneford
October 2006. Friends of Warneford Meadow has been formed to protest about the proposed developments.

Further information