“Rejection of plans for a major holiday development in the middle of Black Wood shows local democracy at its best,” said the Society’s Chairman Douglas Paterson.

Commenting on Winchester City Council’s refusal of permission for a 130-chalet holiday park near Micheldever Station2, Douglas Paterson hailed the news as “a victory for local people, local wildlife and the local environment.”

The Dever Society has been actively monitoring the proposals since March 2008. “We held several meetings with representatives from the developers, Forest Holidays, before lodging our formal objection to the scheme,” said Douglas Paterson. “We’ve also liaised closely with Micheldever Parish Council, and we supported their judgement that there were strong planning reasons for opposing a holiday development in this particular location.”

The Society’s objection was amongst more than 120 representations received by City Council planners, with objectors including CPRE Hampshire, the Hampshire Wildlife Trust, local parish councils, and the Government’s wildlife agency Natural England. Dever Society members were amongst the many local people who also wrote to oppose the proposals.

In rejecting3 Forest Holidays’ application, the City Council reflected the Dever Society’s view that the development would significantly harm the landscape setting, tranquillity and wildlife of this protected ancient woodland4. “The City Council also accepted our opinion that the scheme would generate an unacceptable increase in the amount of traffic on local roads, posing a danger to pedestrians, cyclists and other road users,” Douglas Paterson concluded.

More follows …

Notes for Editors

• The Dever Society is an amenity society for the Hampshire Downs and the Dever Valley, and is a registered charity affiliated to the Campaign to Protect Rural England. The Society’s principal objective is to conserve, protect and celebrate the countryside in this part of Hampshire. In particular, it is concerned with the conservation and enhancement of the Hampshire Downs, which comprise the county’s rural heartland. The Downs provide a unique and valued resource for those who visit and enjoy the countryside, as well as forming an essential feature of the agricultural economy of the county.

  The Society has a large membership, drawn not only from those who live in the Dever Valley, but also from a wide area of Hampshire and elsewhere in Britain.