Dedham Vale Society Winter 2007 No 61

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EditorialThe Society is fortunate in having the services of two new committee members. Roger Drury,who has taken on the role of Planning Officer for Essex, and Adam Sedgwick who will representthe Stoke by Nayland area. Roger refers, in ‘Essex Planning Notes, to the Buntings application atGreat Horkesley and it would appear from their publicity that the retail park is imminent. Itis presumptuous, to say the least, for them to claim that their ‘Country Park’ will soon beopening, ‘subject to planning permission’, as the slogan illustrated in the photograph of thedisplay van at the Asda Store near Colchester North Station states.The company is very confident but it will be disastrous for the Vale if they succeed.In this edition, the final part of the late Roger Freeman’s reminiscences appears and alsoanother of DVS member Maureen Cleave’s fascinating interviews with local people, thistime, David Cleveland, founder of the East Anglian Film Archive. Maureen’s articles, writtensolely for this publication, have regularly appeared in the DVS Newsletter over the years.I am indebted to her for the time and effort involved. (Editor)NOTES BY PLANNING SECRETARY, SUFFOLK – WINTER 2006-2007There has been no dramatic activity on the planning front in the AONB on the Suffolkside of the River Stour since I wrote my brief contribution for the Summer edition of themagazine in August 2006.The County Education Authority withdrew its application for an intrusive 18 metre high mastat East Bergholt High School and has agreed to look at alternative means of providing accessto the “School Broadband Network”. With luck this ugly structure may now not be built.Sympathetic and restrained plans to convert the former Rose Inn in Thorington Street intoa single private residence have been approved and work is well under way.Applications for minor extensions and in-filling continue apace, some more objectionablethan others .An unsatisfactory application to extend the Tower House, part of the originalbuildings of the Jane Walker Hospital above Wissington, has yet to be determined as havetwo applications for infilling in East Bergholt, both of which seek to cram their sites.Also waiting for decision are applications to erect new workshops and ancillaries at theLeavenheath Joinery on the edges of the AONB – a much reduced and refined proposal fromthat rejected earlier in the year- and one to build guest accommodation at the flourishingCrown Inn in Stoke by Nayland. This latter proposal makes considerable efforts to minimizeits impact on the views from the valley of the River Box within the AONB but it remainsintrusive for the near neighbours and it is questionable whether the roof level presentlyproposed is justifiable given that it only generates three extra rooms.Gravel pits have also reared their ugly heads again. The County Council’s proposalsinclude three which would affect the AONB, an extension of the existing Layham Quarry, anarea west of the Stoke by Nayland Golf Course in Leavenheath and a farm on the edges ofEast Bergholt. None are actually in the AONB but the development of any one of them wouldhave a noticeably detrimental impact on the area. The Society has registered its objection.I am very grateful to Adam Sedgwick of Downs House, Church Street, Stoke by Nayland,who has agreed to help me with applications affecting Stoke, stepping into John Frampton’sshoes.David EkingPlanning Secretary, Suffolk February 20074
ESSEX PLANNING NOTESThe Dedham Vale forms part of a totally unique cultural heritage where the views paintedby John Constable are present today and his progress through the Vale can be followed throughhis wonderfully atmospheric landscapes. If current and future generations are going to enjoythe Vale as it has been passed down to us a key to that enjoyment must be to maintain thepeace and tranquillity from the intrusions of the modern world.Two notable victories in defence of this the smallest of the Areas of Outstanding NaturalBeauty have been achieved in the last few months. Firstly the planning application from theEssex and Suffolk Gliding Club for a large increase in their powered flying days fromWormingford Airfield was withdrawn in the face of strong local opposition. A second successwas the rejection of an appeal against enforcement action taken by Babergh District Councilconcerning the use of a second runway at the Wissington by Nayland Airfield. We are all awareof the problem of the noise of aircraft passing over the Vale but locally generated noise is aserious issue in the west of the AONB. We must never be over-confident; these “disputes”have been running for over two decades and further battles will almost certainly lie ahead.However, the greatest threat to the whole of the AONB must be the Horkesley Park Heritageand Conservation Centre. When the third application was withdrawn in March 2006 in faceof local opposition, a full consultation process with the local community was promised – nosuch process appears to have taken place and a resubmission appears to be imminent. Here isnot the place to research the arguments on how this development would impact the whole ofthe Vale, it is enough to say that 750,000 visitors a year focused on Horkesley, Nayland andBoxted but spreading throughout the area on a totally inadequate infrastructure would bedevastating. With the developments associated with the rapid expansion of the East of England,it becomes even more important to protect the countryside from commercial exploitationwhilst encouraging the widest recreational opportunities for all.Having grown up on farms in Lincolnshire in the 1940s when the shire horse was anintegrated part of the working countryside, am I the only one who finds it deeply offensive to seethese magnificent Suffolk Punches paraded by Bunting & Sons at all manner of occasions andplaces including supermarket car parks? These are creatures of great beauty and we underminetheir dignity by parading them as fairground animals in furtherance of commercial gain.We must garner all our resources to oppose any development that would undermine thewonderful cultural heritage that we are privileged to experience today. The Stour ValleyAction Group will admirably lead the opposition and you can keep yourself informed atwww.stourvalleyactiongroup.org.ukAnother issue, which is likely to change the face of the countryside, is the movement ofagricultural subsidies from a production to conservation basis. Many farmers are looking at awide range of diversification projects, which will bring opportunities, including rural employment,to the countryside. However, the vision of redundant farm buildings being turned into lightindustrial use could, and indeed would, change the very nature of the Vale. Such developmentsmust be monitored to ensure that any change of use is sympathetic to the environment.I will detail here the proposed chicken farm at Cherry Tree Farm in the heart of GreatHorkesley, the subject of great debate and anger, as this lies outside the AONB but could be asign of things to come.Above I have concentrated on the major threats to the Vale. However, much smaller issuescan have, collectively, a serious impact on the enjoyment of the environment we all treasure.The inappropriate and unsympathetic building or extension, the proliferation of street signs,the excessive, and often unnecessary street lighting, all impact on the countryside. Whilst wemust concentrate on the “big issues”, we must also be alert to the small issues that change thenature of what we enjoy today. (Roger Drury, Essex Planning Secretary)5
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Page 7 and 8: MEETING WITH CBC PLANNING DEPARTMEN
Page 9 and 10: DEDHAM NEIGHBOURHOOD WATCHNeighbour
Page 11: Power cables in Dedham to disappear
Page 14 and 15: PLANNING GUIDELINES - BABERGHWhat i
Page 16 and 17: is not expected until sometime next
Page 18 and 19: down Monk’s Lane. Some people had
Page 20 and 21: Well, when I first joined in 1950 w
Page 22 and 23: His main interest begins in Victori
Page 24: Spring & Summer WalksProgramme 2007

Dedham Vale Society Winter 2007 No 61

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