Dear Residents,
Apologies for the relative silence over the last few weeks - Christmas and New Year took a little recovering from and it is only now that things have started moving at pace again.
By now you have hopefully received a copy of the latest letter to Bob Grugel from the Association. Once again, as promised, this letter was compiled and agreed by the representatives nominated at our original meeting at the Jolly Sailor last year.
We are still looking to hold our meeting with Janet Anderson and Hazel Harding (and other specific individuals from Lancashire County Council) in early February but we have made it quite clear that it is essential that all the key participants from Lancashire County Council are in attendance to ensure that the meeting can be as productive as possible - we currently await Hazel Harding's response in respect of whether she can ensure their attendance.
In the meantime, Lancashire County Council have still not provided us with information relating to the amended proposals for the school position / design and, as such, we remain unaware of whether or not the new designs address the concerns of local residents. We have, of course, requested that the most recent proposals are provided prior to our meeting with Hazel and others from Lancashire County Council although, given recent history, we will wait and see whether these are provided.
Hopefully you will all have heard of the potential for a further public meeting in the next few weeks to ensure that you are fully up to speed with developments - we will let you all know the date / time / venue as soon as we can make the necessary arrangements.
Once again, thank you for your continuing support.
Monday, January 21, 2008
Friday, November 30, 2007
Initial Response from Bob Grugel
We have received a response to our letter to Bob Grugel of Lancashire County Council dated 5th November 2007 which highlighted our concerns in respect of the development proposals.
Mr Grugel's response, whilst lengthly, does not satisfy our concerns detailed by the points raised within the letter, and we are confused as to the relevance of his references made to events 30 to 40 years ago onthe 21st century issues relating to the proposed development of this site.
Needless to say, Mr Grugel will be receiving a further letter from the Association which makes it very clear that his initial response does nothing to mitigate our concerns.
Furthermore, Mr Grugel suggests that he wishes to ensure that we can all work together to achieve a positive outcome for all those concerned. However, we have received no further information regarding the amendments that have been made to the original plans for the school development and he is also yet to provide any further information in respect of the BRGS development proposals that we believe are linked to the primary school development proposals.
Time will tell whether Lancashire County Council decide to involve the local community in a constructive dialogue and consultation process but rest assured we will be doing everything we can to ensure that they do so.
Mr Grugel's response, whilst lengthly, does not satisfy our concerns detailed by the points raised within the letter, and we are confused as to the relevance of his references made to events 30 to 40 years ago onthe 21st century issues relating to the proposed development of this site.
Needless to say, Mr Grugel will be receiving a further letter from the Association which makes it very clear that his initial response does nothing to mitigate our concerns.
Furthermore, Mr Grugel suggests that he wishes to ensure that we can all work together to achieve a positive outcome for all those concerned. However, we have received no further information regarding the amendments that have been made to the original plans for the school development and he is also yet to provide any further information in respect of the BRGS development proposals that we believe are linked to the primary school development proposals.
Time will tell whether Lancashire County Council decide to involve the local community in a constructive dialogue and consultation process but rest assured we will be doing everything we can to ensure that they do so.
Thursday, November 8, 2007
Campaign Gathering Pace
A very useful and productive meeting was held between representatives of the Waterfoot Green Belt Residents Association and Janet Anderson (MP for Rossendale and Darwen) yesterday evening (8th November 2007).
Janet has committed to write to Hazel Harding (Leader of Lancashire Council Council - LCC) to request a meeting, to be attended by representatives of Waterfoot Green Belt Residents Association, at which LCC will be requested to define precisely how a formal and robust consultative process can be commenced.
The first formal communication from Waterfoot Green Belt Residents Association to LCC was posted yesterday in the form of a letter addressed to Robert Grugel, Buildings and Development Officer for the Education Directorate at LCC. This letter was also copied to a number of other parties including other LCC officials, Rossendale Borough Councillors, The Open Spaces Society and The Council for the Protection of Rural England (should you wish to receive a full pdf or MS Word copy of this letter please email roger@thomsonfm.co.uk).
Although no official confirmation of this has been received (other than via telephone conversations with various parties), we are led to believe that LCC have amended the original proposals for the new school in the light of very preliminary comments from the residents (not, I would add, from the Waterfoot Green Belt Residents Association). However, we also understand that even these revised plans that were "unveiled" in some secrecy on 1st November 2007 have already been superseded and as such we have not been provided any plans for these revised proposals.
Again, we will look to keep all residents as fully up to date with developments as possible and hope that we can continue to rely on your support in respect of this very worthwhile cause.
Janet has committed to write to Hazel Harding (Leader of Lancashire Council Council - LCC) to request a meeting, to be attended by representatives of Waterfoot Green Belt Residents Association, at which LCC will be requested to define precisely how a formal and robust consultative process can be commenced.
The first formal communication from Waterfoot Green Belt Residents Association to LCC was posted yesterday in the form of a letter addressed to Robert Grugel, Buildings and Development Officer for the Education Directorate at LCC. This letter was also copied to a number of other parties including other LCC officials, Rossendale Borough Councillors, The Open Spaces Society and The Council for the Protection of Rural England (should you wish to receive a full pdf or MS Word copy of this letter please email roger@thomsonfm.co.uk).
Although no official confirmation of this has been received (other than via telephone conversations with various parties), we are led to believe that LCC have amended the original proposals for the new school in the light of very preliminary comments from the residents (not, I would add, from the Waterfoot Green Belt Residents Association). However, we also understand that even these revised plans that were "unveiled" in some secrecy on 1st November 2007 have already been superseded and as such we have not been provided any plans for these revised proposals.
Again, we will look to keep all residents as fully up to date with developments as possible and hope that we can continue to rely on your support in respect of this very worthwhile cause.
Monday, November 5, 2007
Progress Update
Since the last update on this blog the Waterfoot Green Belt Residents Association has agreed a number of key actions and made steady progress in respect of those actions.
1. A letter of objection has been drafted which highlights the key areas of concern and requests full and detailed responses from the appropriate party (generally within Lancashire County Council) - this letter will be issued during week commencing 5th November 2007. Please note, all those who wish to sign the letter and demonstrate their objection should let me know (roger@thomsonfm.co.uk) as soon as possible.
2. A meeting is to be held with Janet Anderson (MP for Darwen and Rossendale) during week commencing 5th November 2007 at which we will make clear our concerns and look to obtain support from Janet in our efforts to protect this Green Belt land.
3. We have subscribed to the Open Spaces Society and have been offered support from their General Secretary (Kate Ashbrook) in respect of our attempts to protect the proposed site.
4. The Council for the Protection of Rural England (CPRE) have been approached and discussions with their local representatives have been very helpful. We are looking to ensure that they provide as much support as they can to our efforts.
5. We have been in contact with a number of local and national wildlife protection organisations who have also provided very useful information and assistance and we are sure that they will continue to do so.
6. We have met with Simon Jones (Headteacher at Waterfoot Primary School), Nick Dale (Lancashire County Council Architect) and Catherine Lewis (Lancashire County Council Development Control Officer) and have voiced our concerns. It is clear that whilst Lancashire County Council have a desire to develop the proposed new school on this site, they are fully aware of many of the significant issues associated with this site and, as yet, they have been unable to provide sufficiently robust proposals to mitigate our concerns or to justify the development of this land.
The more local people we can get to lobby against this proposed development the better and as such I would ask you all to do what you can to assist our campaign and to discuss the proposals with your neighbours to ensure that everyone is fully informed.
1. A letter of objection has been drafted which highlights the key areas of concern and requests full and detailed responses from the appropriate party (generally within Lancashire County Council) - this letter will be issued during week commencing 5th November 2007. Please note, all those who wish to sign the letter and demonstrate their objection should let me know (roger@thomsonfm.co.uk) as soon as possible.
2. A meeting is to be held with Janet Anderson (MP for Darwen and Rossendale) during week commencing 5th November 2007 at which we will make clear our concerns and look to obtain support from Janet in our efforts to protect this Green Belt land.
3. We have subscribed to the Open Spaces Society and have been offered support from their General Secretary (Kate Ashbrook) in respect of our attempts to protect the proposed site.
4. The Council for the Protection of Rural England (CPRE) have been approached and discussions with their local representatives have been very helpful. We are looking to ensure that they provide as much support as they can to our efforts.
5. We have been in contact with a number of local and national wildlife protection organisations who have also provided very useful information and assistance and we are sure that they will continue to do so.
6. We have met with Simon Jones (Headteacher at Waterfoot Primary School), Nick Dale (Lancashire County Council Architect) and Catherine Lewis (Lancashire County Council Development Control Officer) and have voiced our concerns. It is clear that whilst Lancashire County Council have a desire to develop the proposed new school on this site, they are fully aware of many of the significant issues associated with this site and, as yet, they have been unable to provide sufficiently robust proposals to mitigate our concerns or to justify the development of this land.
The more local people we can get to lobby against this proposed development the better and as such I would ask you all to do what you can to assist our campaign and to discuss the proposals with your neighbours to ensure that everyone is fully informed.
Saturday, October 20, 2007
Sunday, October 14, 2007
Waterfoot Primary School - Development Proposals
With the amalgamation of Waterfoot Primary School and Cloughfold Primary School the combined school is looking to relocate to a new site and building which, they believe, to be more appropriate for the purposes than the existing Waterfoot Primary School on Thornfield Avenue, Waterfoot.
It is currently proposed that the new school facility is to be built on land, presently designated as "green-belt" adjacent to Booth Road with access through Wolfenden Green (currently a cul-de-sac).
The proposals that were shared with the community at an open-day at Waterfoot Primary School on the 11th October 2007 show the new school building and the associated car parking situated adjacent to the rear of the existing residential properties on Booth Road.
If we accept that there is a potential need for a new school facility (I know some do not believe this to be the case) then we need to ensure that our voices are heard in respect of the location and design of the new facility to minimise the impact to the local residents and to ensure that the detrimental impact on green-belt land is minimised or eliminated altogether by locating the new school elsewhere.
The reason many of us have bought properties on Booth Road and Wolfenden Green is as a direct result of the fantastic views that we enjoy over the valley and the peace and tranquility of the fields that our properties back onto.
We need to ensure that we demonstrate our joint commitment to minimising the impact of this potential development and this blog is intended to allow people from the local community to voice their own views in respect of the proposals.
As our discussions with Lancashire County Council and Waterfoot Primary School continue, we will add further information to this blog in order to ensure everyone can continue to be fully informed. We will also provide information regarding meetings that are to be held in order to maintain the momentum of our campaign to ensure that our concerns are recognised and mitigated against to our satisfaction.
I look forward to reading your comments on this blog and hope that we will secure a more sensible solution that meets the needs of the local community at large as well as the specific desires of Waterfoot Primary School.
It is currently proposed that the new school facility is to be built on land, presently designated as "green-belt" adjacent to Booth Road with access through Wolfenden Green (currently a cul-de-sac).
The proposals that were shared with the community at an open-day at Waterfoot Primary School on the 11th October 2007 show the new school building and the associated car parking situated adjacent to the rear of the existing residential properties on Booth Road.
If we accept that there is a potential need for a new school facility (I know some do not believe this to be the case) then we need to ensure that our voices are heard in respect of the location and design of the new facility to minimise the impact to the local residents and to ensure that the detrimental impact on green-belt land is minimised or eliminated altogether by locating the new school elsewhere.
The reason many of us have bought properties on Booth Road and Wolfenden Green is as a direct result of the fantastic views that we enjoy over the valley and the peace and tranquility of the fields that our properties back onto.
We need to ensure that we demonstrate our joint commitment to minimising the impact of this potential development and this blog is intended to allow people from the local community to voice their own views in respect of the proposals.
As our discussions with Lancashire County Council and Waterfoot Primary School continue, we will add further information to this blog in order to ensure everyone can continue to be fully informed. We will also provide information regarding meetings that are to be held in order to maintain the momentum of our campaign to ensure that our concerns are recognised and mitigated against to our satisfaction.
I look forward to reading your comments on this blog and hope that we will secure a more sensible solution that meets the needs of the local community at large as well as the specific desires of Waterfoot Primary School.
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