Your chance to VOTE on the future of Thorpe Woodlands

The Public Consultation is now live! and this page explains how you can vote on the future of Norwich's largest woodland area. Every vote and comment will count. Should the woods be saved as a green space for the people of Norwich, core habitat and refuge for wildlife and store of biodiversity, or should they be built upon? 

There are two Thorpe Woodlands questions in the public consultation. 

Without strong public support for the woodlands, the landowners could challenge any Broadland District Council decision to refuse development of the site. We can save this wood and its wildlife but only with your help.

To vote and comment by email on the future of Thorpe Woodlands

email your response to Question 23 and 24 to this email address link: 

ldf@broadland.gov.uk (see notes for email voting) 

Notes for email voting  

If you want to read question 23 and 24 and related information easily without lengthy registration, use this direct link to Thorpe Woodlands in the consultation and scroll down to read questions. Return to use the email link above.

In email heading be sure to state 'Consultation answers to Thorpe Woodlands Questions 23 and 24' (or '23' if only responding to the Thorpe Woods one)  And put question number with each answer in email

Include strong reasons if possible (and there are plenty in this case) they will add weight to your vote.

And remember to include your Name and Address 

To Vote and comment on the Broadland Consultation Website

You'll need to register before voting and commenting, It's a little long winded, but if you can spare 10 minutes, the woodlands will last a lot longer.  

broadland-consult.objective.co.uk will take you to the consultation home page where you can register. 

As the Thorpe Woods questions are a little hard to find, return here whenever you're ready to leave your vote and comments by this direct link below. 

Direct link to Thorpe woods questions 23 and 24 and scroll down to questions. 

You can read the related material above the questions, but if you know what you want to say, go ahead. Strong reasons though (and there are plenty in this case) will add weight to your vote.

Helpful Notes: 

Your comments on the consultation site take a while to show up after submitting them (as I learned).

Also: there is just the one comments box for Question 23 which seems to be two separate questions.
Also: The age, nationality and ethnicity questions can be filled in more than once if in doubt.
Stay calm,  every vote and comment counts and it is to save Norwich's largest woodland and it's wildlife. 

To vote/comment by Printable Response Form

You can print out this form, fill in your name, address, and write your comments then send it to the Broadland Council address on the form  

Thank you for helping to save Thorpe Woods

Between a Rock and a green space...

(Continue reading here for 'Between a Rock and a green space')
That's the choice we'll all be faced with when BDC's public consultation begins on March 18th.  Rock Fielding-Mellen was quoted at some length in Chris Hill's excellent feature on Thorpe Woods (Evening News, 4th March and Eastern Daily Press on 5th March).  Rock might have talked a lot but he wasn't saying anything. He simply regurgitated the same old drivel doled out by the Mayhews, the Meath-Bakers and Andres Duany during their charade of a charrette in July 2010.

Fielding-Mellen said he wanted to explore all options, that nothing had been decided, that he wanted to see what everyone thought about the site and to gather local knowledge and opinion, and that only when he had done this would any concrete plans be produced for the future of the woods.  He said that the BDC consultation would form the start of this process, and went on to say that he didn't think anything like a "ground -up exercise looking at all the opportunities and constraints" had ever been attempted before.

It is common knowledge that Gail Mayhew spent months getting him started on this 'project' and went to the trouble of introducing him to local council members and officials. It is incredible that Gail, who loves to talk about her ideas on how the woods could be enhanced by building houses in them, didn't let Rock know in great detail about everything that had happened over the 12 years or so that she's been involved in 'promoting' the woods. Yet what he said was exactly what his predecessors told everyone two and a half years ago.

Back then, they told everyone throughout their week long charrette how they wanted it to be a ground-up exercise designed to explore every option; how they would be guided by local knowledge and opinion, and if it turned out that local opinion was strongly against any development in the woods, there would be none.  They promised to hold another public meeting in September 2010, to gauge public opinion once the charrette had had time to sink in. They promised to release their video of Andres Duany's final presentation (at which Duany revealed the shockingly destructive nature of his plans, and at which he was loudly argued against despite doing his utmost to avoid awkward questions). They promised that they would keep everyone thoroughly informed by keeping their website fully up to date. They also assured us that their motives were honourable and that their approach to all things connected with the woods was entirely open and honest.

They didn't hold any more meetings. They didn't release their video. They didn't update their website once, and they failed to keep anyone but themselves informed about anything. Their 'open and honest approach' was flexible enough to allow for Gail Mayhew to acquire, in August 2010, website domain names such as friendsof thorpewoods.co.uk, savethorpewoods.co.uk etc, presumably in the hope of thwarting any ambitions on our part to obtain them.

They lied then, and it looks very much as if the same old lies have been passed to Rock for another airing.

But maybe Rock will surprise us all?  Perhaps he'll do a bit of research (this blog would be a good start), talk to some local people and their elected representatives, and the penny could just drop: maybe he'll realise that nobody wants the woods changed in any way other than for the better - and that better means nothing more than managed for the benefit of their already flourishing wildlife and made easier for people to walk around. Maybe he'll see that people don't merely value the woods as places to walk their dogs, but for their intrinsic beauty and the wealth of flora and fauna to be seen in them at all times of the year - values which would be ruined if his clients (Thorpe & Felthorpe Trust, aka the Mayhews & Meath-Bakers) ever get their way.

Rock might see the dazzlingly obvious where those who went before failed, but it would be unwise to put too much hope in that. Instead, we must all take the chance afforded by the forthcoming BDC consultation, to let BDC know exactly what we think of any 'promotion of the site for development'.

AN UNPRECEDENTED LEVEL OF THREAT

(Read on here for article 'An unprecedented level of threat')

Britain’s trees & woods are facing “an unprecedented level of threat” according to a report recently published by the Forestry Commission. 19 serious pests and diseases have been recorded as occurring in the country’s tree population, with 10 of these considered to be of epidemic status. Further pests & diseases are rapidly approaching our island from the continent, and are expected to appear here in the near future. The most serious and by far the most talked about disease is ash dieback, which threatens to bring about enormous changes to Britain’s landscape. Acute oak decline is an as yet poorly understood syndrome which results in severe and rapid crown dieback and death. Phytophthora diseases of various species are attacking a range of species including alder, larch, juniper and horse chestnut. Sweet chestnut blight has arrived from continental Europe in the past year or so, and the list continues to grow.

In addition to the threat from ‘natural’ causes, our woodlands are under continual attack by developers. Our trees and woods have always been under-protected but the government’s recent planning reforms have weakened their protection further.

In July 2012 the government released figures from the Independent Panel on Forestry showing that some 3750 acres of woodland has been lost every year for the past ten years. In that period, 683 woods came under threat from developers, of which 134 woods were lost. Research completed in 2012 concluded that there has been a decline of over 95% in hedgerow trees over the past 60 years: in 1951 there were estimated to be 56 million hedgerow trees in England, whereas the figure for 2012 is an estimated 2 million.

All this at a time when trees and woodlands are more valued than ever by the public. The outcry against the government’s scheme to sell off the Forestry Commission’s land was huge, and had to be heeded. Locally, the campaign to save Thorpe’s woods has become extremely popular, illustrated by a torrent of letters in the Norwich Evening News in the fortnight before Christmas: the catalyst for this impressive flood of letter-writing was an article in the Evening News on 10th December reporting that Thorpe councillors Ian Mackie and Nigel Shaw had re-stated their commitment to standing up for the woods.

Britain’s woodlands are very much under siege but the threat to woodlands in Norfolk, and the Norwich area in particular, is probably greater than average. Not only was the site of one of the UK’s first confirmed outbreaks of ash dieback in mature woodland under 20 miles from Norwich, but Norfolk has acute oak decline and Phytophthora diseases in alder, horse chestnut and other tree species. But on top of this, the north-eastern fringes of Norwich have been targeted for 10,000 new houses to be built by 2026. Landowners have been eagerly rubbing their hands in anticipation of the millions they could make if their land is allocated for development in the North East Norwich Growth Triangle, and among these landowners is, of course, the Thorpe & Felthorpe Trust, owners of our woods in Thorpe.

Before the T&FT can lay a single brick, however, Broadland District Council have to explicitly declare the woods available for development in their forthcoming Area Action Plan. The AAP will be the development planning document that govern which land within the growth triangle may be considered for development and which land is to be retained as green space (or ‘Green Infrastructure’ as it is officially called).

In view of the unprecedented level of threat to woodlands in general, anyone might expect the concept of allowing such superb woodland as is found at Racecourse Plantation, Belmore Plantation and Brown’s Plantation to be destroyed for development to be completely unthinkable. However, BDC have so far been reluctant to see it this way. There are strong indications that BDC will include an option for development on the woods in the AAP consultation, expected to be launched in April 2013. We expect alternative options that exclude any development on the woods to go alongside it.

When the AAP consultation begins, it will be essential that everyone who cares about Thorpe’s woods, and woodlands and trees in general, seizes their chance to stand up for the woods by responding to the consultation. An overwhelming NO to any development in Thorpe’s woods will help steer BDC’s decision-makers in the right direction.

Watch this space for updates, and please also put your email address on the new urgent mailout list by sending an email to: savethorpewoods@gmail.com

.

Gail brings Kensington Rock to Thorpe Woods

(Read on for article 'Gail brings Kensington Rock to Thorpe Woods')

There is a saying that rust never sleeps and this is true of those well heeled and connected folk who've dedicated much of their time to trying to make a fast buck from building on Thorpe Woodlands.

The trustees of the Thorpe & Felthorpe Trust inherited the woodlands from their now late grandfather John Gurney, who's vision some say contained a little more social conscience. The estate's Forest Plan at least foresaw no development on the woods, rather a gradual improvement of habitat.
For the 12 years since John Gurney's passing, the T&FT have striven to secure planning permission to build on Thorpe's woods. Gaining access to every level of planning decision-making possible, even sitting on Green Infrastructure and Sustainability committees while at the same time planning to profit from burying long standing woodland under housing. They've employed one PR firm or development group after another, with the woods presented as little more than redundant pine plantation, conveniently omitting to mention rare species, diverse wildlife habitat and glowing Norfolk Wildlife Trust assessments.

Now with Broadland District Council set to lay out new planning options for the Growth Triangle for consultation in March, The Thorpe and Felthorpe Trust have found another PR ally to sell their plans. Rock Fielding-Mellen, Councillor for Royal Borough of Kensington under the guise of one of his companies 'Socially Conscious Capital' is to become front man in driving roughshod over County Wildlife Site assessments, Ancient Woodland declarations and local public opinion.

This could be their last chance to get their 'quick quid' out of the nature they inherited; BDC could exclude the Woods from the development zone in the light of new Norfolk Wildlife Trust assessments. 

Rock Fielding-Mellon has very recently set up a whole new branch of his company "Socially Conscious Capital (Norwich)", presumably with the sole aim of lobbying for development on Thorpe's woods.  Rock has also been 'introduced' by Gail Mayhew to the clerk of Thorpe St Andrew Town Council. We feel slightly suspicious of the motive for this officially private introductory meeting. Rock and Gail must have some plan up their sleeve, and if the opportunity to introduce it was not taken there, we can only assume it will be aired as little as possible until a time of best advantage and manoeuvring in the Councils planning procedure.  
We can be sure that quietly, something is being planned, and from previous experience it's not likely to be good news for the woodlands' trees, wildlife or the people of Thorpe and Norwich. We've contacted Socially Conscious Capital to ask what their vision for 'good urbanism' will mean for a County Wildlife Site Woodland, we wait with interest. 

Socially Conscious Capital's 'urban vision' is at:

http://www.sociallyconsciouscapital.co.uk/

ROCK FM comes to Norwich

(Read on for article 'ROCK FM comes to Norwich')
Sorry Led Zeppelin fans, Rock FM isn't a new radio station, but an oddly named fellow who has been accompanying Gail Mayhew to GNDP meetings recently.  Gail gets everywhere (or at least tries to), and manages to ingratiate herself with members of just about every committee that has anything to do with the North East Norwich Growth Triangle.  Her efforts aren't really surprising, in view of the fact that her family own not only Thorpe's woods but most of Sprowston's too, as well as many hundreds more acres of land in the Triangle.

But I digress - the surprising extent of the Mayhew / Meath-Baker families' landholdings will be the subject of another article.  The point of this article is to introduce you all to Rock Basil Hugo Fielding-Mellen, or Rock FM for short.  Rock really is his first name, but he prefers to drop most of the rest of it when it seems expedient to appear ordinary: Rock Fielding is how he's signed himself in to the meetings he's attended with Gail.  Both have put themselves down as representatives of the Thorpe & Felthorpe Trust (the most recent being a meeting at County Hall in June, to discuss "Green Infrastructure Maintenance").

Rock's mother is Amanda, Countess of Wemyss and March. Rock's ancestors include the Earl of Denbigh and the Marquess of Bath.  Rock is posh, just like 'Barney' Mayhew and Justin (Meath-)Baker. And like them, he seems to want to portray himself as just an ordinary person when it suits his interests.  Not only is he posh, with all the family wealth and influence that goes with poshhood, and not only is he a key figure in the Royal Borough of Kensington & Chelsea, he is also the founding director of Socially Conscious Capital and Socially Conscious Capital (Norwich).

"Socially Conscious Capital".  Sounds intriguing but whatever could it mean?  Helpfully, Rock and his pals have provided a website to explain exactly what it means (http://www.sociallyconsciouscapital.co.uk/).  SCC is a company run from Rock's mum's house on Chelsea Embankment - in common with several other oddly named businesses, none of which seem to do much business, if any.  Rock apparently likes dabbling in entrepreneurial enterprises but rarely seems to get much further than setting a company up, appointing a few mates as directors and then waiting for things to happen.  SCC is pretty new, so maybe this one will break the mould?

They've certainly got themselves a nice looking website, which tells us, among other things, that "we are very selective about the projects we take on" - (so selective they haven't taken on any yet - or have they?) 

The explanation continues: "Our key criteria for taking on a new project include: the site itself must have sufficient natural advantages to make a high quality new developemnt feasible" - well, Thorpe's woods have plenty of natural advantages but they make any kind of developemt completely unfeasible.

Furthermore, the website specifies: "The landowner must be willing and able to take a longer term view with regards to maximising the value of the site" - T&FT have no problem fulfilling that criterion, they've been trying to get permission to build all over the woods for over ten years and show no sign of losing interest.

Perhaps most interestingly, SCC's website states: "We are not shy of taking on sites with problems and obstacles, or sites that have a history of unsuccessful promotion"  Hmm, so the upstart SCC, with all of Rock FM's massive lack of business experience behind it, thinks its very frst project can succeed where Andres Duany, DPZ and the Matrix Partnership failed?

SCC Norwich is even newer than SCC.  There is no website or any other information on SCC Norwich, other than the companies house record that it was founded in February 2012.  It doesn't look like a subsidiary of SCC, but more like a whole new partnership.  Rock's partners in SCC are his mum, his stepdad and a couple of mates from Eton/Harrow or wherever.  But his partner in SCC Norwich is one Giles Cherry, a London-based property developer and private landlord.  In the absence of any published information we can only assume that Gail has long been acquainted with Rock from her own days at the Royal Borough of Kensington & Chelsea, and is turning to his experimental company as a bit of a last resort.  Whether it is the original SCC, or the Norwich offshoot, that is now working for the T&FT we can only guess: it seems probable that the Norwich offshoot was created especially to cater for Gail's family's 'needs'. 

It makes little difference either way.  However fancy SCC's / SCC Norwich's corporate gloss, facts are facts, and they'll soon come up against some pretty insurmountable ones where Thorpe's woods are concerned.  If only it were true that these woods are nothing more than miserable, ecologically barren conifer plantations - life for the aspiring development consultant would be so much easier.

There's a lot more to be said on Rock FM and Socially Conscious Capital, but - as is the case with what's to be said on Gail's family's land-holdings around Norwich - that will have to wait for another time.

TWO YEARS ON...

(Read on for article 'Two years on')
The campaign to save Thorpe's woods has passed the two year mark and is still going strong.  On 13th July 2010, the final presentation of the Thorpe & Felthorpe Trust's 'charrette' was held at Norwich Art School.  This followed a presentation at Thorpe village hall, at which Barney Mayhew and Justin Meath-Baker - both posing as ordinary human beings - spoke about their need to find alternative uses for the exhausted conifer plantations they'd found themselves lumbered with.

A lot of water has flowed under the bridge since then.  The lies that were told about the woods - which originally took quite a few people in, including some local authority officers - were long ago exposed for what they were.  Everybody in the Norwich area now knows that Thorpe's woods are excellent wildlife habitats and diverse, mainly broadleaved woodlands - not the disease-ridden, overgrown Christmas tree crops of such little use or ornament that putting them out of their misery would be performing a public service. 

People also know now that there's no reason to pity the plight of the Mayhews and Meath-Bakers.  Contrary to the impression they strove to convey they are not just like the rest of us - hard working ordinary folks who need to tighten their belts in these tough economic times - but are genuine toffs with huge land-holdings and bags of dosh. There is no doubt that they could afford to keep Thorpe's woods, and even spend money on conserving them (as they told us they would love to do), without any noticeable effect on their bank accounts.

Two years on, the Thorpe & Felthorpe Trust is now on its third firm of development consultants.  First they spent a fortune on Andres Duany of DPZ.  When the hoped-for Duany golden touch fell flat (deflated by inconvenient truths), T&FT hired the Matrix Partnership.  Matrix drew up a different development concept (we published pictures on this blog). Matrix's concept shifted things around a bit but failed completely to address the fundamental flaw in the scheme, ie: that it involved flattening a wood!

Now it seems as if Matrix has followed DPZ into the recycling bin, to be replaced by the lovely sounding Socially Conscious Capital.  Socially Conscious Capital's improbably named head has been attending local authority meetings in Norwich under the Thorpe & Felthorpe Trust banner, accompanying Gail Mayhew.

As the cynical among you might expect, Socially Conscious Capital isn't quite the philanthropic, kindly organisation its name suggests.  SCC has an interesting business history and its head has a name to rival Clovis Meath-Baker's in the poshness/oddness stakes.  But you'll have to wait until next time to learn more (unless you want to do a bit of Googling).  Watch this space!

HENRY GOES APE IN NORFOLK

(Read on for article 'Henry goes ape in Norfolk')
Rumours of dissent among the trustees of the Thorpe & Felthorpe Trust have been circulating for months.  In January we were told by a reliable source that at least one of the five trustees was opposed to the concept of destroying Thorpe's woodlands. However, because our source wouldn't disclose any names, we didn't publish anything.

Now we know that Henry Mayhew, husband of the locally notorious Gail Mayhew (see 'Meet The Mayhews' and 'Gail Warning' on this blog for much more info on who's who within the T&FT) has become so disenchanted with life as a London based mega-capitalist that he's given it all up for a hut in the woods.

The Secret History Of Our Streets, broadcast on BBC2 on 3rd July 2012 (available on BBCiplayer until 18th July and well worth watching) traced the evolution of Portland Street in the Royal Borough of Kensington & Chelsea from 1950s slummy bedsit-land to its 21st century shockingly expensive and ultra fashionable location for London's idle rich.  Past and present residents were interviewed, among whom were Henry Mayhew who was happy to recount to an audience of millions how he had only come to own his house because "my wife made me buy it".  He went on to explain that Gail (whose name he avoided mentioning) made him buy it because she thought it would be a good investment.  She was, Henry stated with a commendable lack of visible bitterness, right as always.

Henry was obviously far from happy with his lot.  The idea of living in an 'investment' had clearly become absurd to him and he craved something more meaningful.  Portland Street, Henry told us, was deathly boring, inhabited only by investment bankers who had grabbed the taxpayers' cash doled out to them by a stupid government - supposedly intended for lending to small businesses - and spent it all on their trendy houses.  I got the feeling that Henry really had experienced an epiphany.  Social justice and ecological sustainability go hand in hand and - as Henry seemed to have realised - any attempt to separate them ultimately comes to nothing.

Rather like Reggie Perrin, Henry knows in his heart, I feel, that what is right is for the remaining woods and forests of this world is to be left alone, not turned into housing estates.  Maybe it is as obvious to Henry as it is to us that the latter way spells madness. You might get half a century or so of apparent 'benefit' from 'developing' every available space, but time will inevitably catch up and the destruction of nature - of which building on Racecourse Plantation would be  a very significant part - will cause our grandchildren to weep.

While Henry moved into his converted shipping container somewhere in a Felthorpe forestry plantation, Gail moved into a nice house in Norwich's exclusive Cathedral Close.  Gail remains as zealous as ever in her quest for profitable development.

Look out on this blog for more news on recent developments.  There have been several, but due to such mundane things as serious medical conditions (now fully sorted thanks to the ever brilliant NHS) and tedious details such as the work we ordinary mortals who haven't got enormous legacies to tap in to need to do,  it may take a day or two to get these published.