THE Inspector who held the public inquiry into possibly establishing a South Downs National Park will recommended to government that it should be established but smaller than the Countryside Agency had proposed. Amongst the changes he recommended is not to include any Woodland east of Titnore Lane, Castle Goring or the southern slope of Highdown Hill, and has indeed recommended that Titnore Lane should form the eastern boundary of the Highdown section of the Park.

His recommendation is therefore a major blow to our Save Titnore Woods Campaign and one that cannot go unchallenged.

We are therefore asking everyone of you, if you care about this important area, to write to the government minister concerned to request that the original boundary as recommended for 'Section Q' by the Countryside Agency be adopted and the Inspectors Titnore lane area recommendations not acted upon.

To assist you here is a sample letter:

SAMPLE LETTER 

 

If you wish you could copy the sample letter as is, however using your own words and thoughts will carry more weight. But whatever you do please write!

jonathan.shaw@defra.gsi.gov.uk is the e-mail address to use, snail mail address is below. Please remember letters etc must reach him by September 24th.             

 

                                                                                                    YOUR ADDRESS

Jonathan Shaw MP, 
Parliamentary Under Secretary of State and Minister for the South East
Defra 
Nobel House, 
17 Smith Square, 
London, 
SW1P 3JR.                                                                                                                                         

DATE

Dear Sir.

South Downs National Park.

I am very pleased that the Inspector who held the Public Inquiry has recommended that the Park should be established, however I am most concerned that he has recommended that the boundary be redrawn to exclude land east of Titnore Lane Worthing because:

a. If this land is excluded there is the real threat it will be built on having been previously earmarked for an industrial development. Should this happen it would create an alien intrusion upon the vista of the Park. Furthermore such a development will generate extra traffic, the noise and increased activity will have a detrimental impact on the tranquillity a National Park should have.

b. By excluding Titnore Lane from the Park increases the likelihood of this quintessential old English Lane becoming part of the western bypass of Worthing linking the A259 and A27 over the South Downs to the A24 at Findon. Not only would this have a disastrous impact on the National Park, it would further fragment Titnore Woods, the last remaining ancient woodland on the coastal plain containing rare and threatened tree, plant and wildlife species. 

Points that could also be made include:  

1.      The Inspector is inconsistent. He argues that the potential for recreation should be considered when evaluating an area’s suitability for inclusion in a National Park, not just the present facilities; then he ignores the potential and considers only the present facilities when he is evaluating the case for including the land east of Titnore Lane. There is the potential for excellent recreational facilities if public rights of way were granted over the existing paths, as might be done if the area was included in the National Park.

2.      The Inspector does not understand the relevant features of the local countryside. He asserts that, apart from the footpath north from Forest Farm, there are few if any views into and  across the land in question because of woodland and trees. He does not realise that this land is overlooked by the southern slope of the Downs and by the summit of Highdown. There are several rights of way over the slope and the summit of Highdown is open access land. From these viewpoints, the woods and park form part of view that makes the area so attractive to walkers.

3.      He also argues that the land east of Titnore Lane does not have strong visual links to the wider Downs. But  just as there are views down onto this land from the Downs, there are views from this land up to the Downs. Such views amount to glimpses through the tree from the woods, but the Downs are the dominant feature of the view north from the park of Castle Goring.

4.      He asserts that the land to the east of Titnore Lane, unlike the land to the west of it, does not have obvious Downland characteristics. The woods on either side of Titnore Lane are very similar in character, forming part of the same block of woodland, so this comment is difficult to understand. The only noticeable difference is that the woods to the west  are slightly higher because they extend up the eastern slope of Highdown. If the Inspector is thinking of the park of Castle Goring, this area provides the setting for the house. It is appropriate for this role, as semi-improved grassland scattered with mature trees. Any land that provides a suitable setting for a mansion will inevitably be different from open Downland or natural woodland

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