Dear Mrs Graves,
Many thanks for your email concerning the current planning application. I have copied our Head
of Housing and Planning (Gill Collin) in to the email as she will ensure that it is copied to the
case officer for consideration as part of the assessment of the application and reported as a
representation on the application.
Regards
Jack Hegarty
Managing Director
DDI: 01386 565400
jack.hegarty@wychavon.gov.uk
Wychavon District Council
Civic Centre
Pershore
Worcestershire
WR10 1PT
www.wychavon.gov.uk
From: tobytwirl
Sent: 08 January 2012 18:24
To: Managing Director
Subject: Email from resident of Honeybourne, Evesham, Worcestershire
Dear Mr Hegarty
Planning Application W/11/02686/PN
On behalf of many Honeybourne residents, I am writing to you to urgently draw your attention to
the current plight of our historic sheep auction field which was featured on the BBC 1 in August
2011.
Since the successful sheep auction this year, we now face a real danger of losing this historic
site to a large housing development (44 dwellings) by developers Sharba Homes. A full planning
application has been submitted by Sharba Homes on the 15th December 2011 to Wychavon
District Council.
This green field site runs along an ancient Roman road where many archaeological finds have
recently been unearthed with some dating back to Roman times and there is evidence of an
ancient orchard that once stood on the grounds of the field. The field also demonstrates a fine
example of medieval ridge and furrow pasture.
The sheep auction field is a key feature in defining and dividing the two villages, Cow
Honeybourne and Church Honeybourne. It creates a green open space and a wildlife corridor
which is home to an abundance of wildlife. If the development goes ahead, it will have a
detrimental and devastating impact on Honeybourne, not only losing the historic field that is
known nationwide but also irreversibly destroying the villages rural setting, environment and
habitats. We have a village petition with over 200 signatures, press coverage in the Evesham
journal and many letters of objection have been posted on the Wychavon planning portal,
including from the Campaign to Protect Rural England (CPRE) and the Rambler's Association.
With the increased pressure to build on greenfield sites to meet national housing quota targets,
there is a desperate need to protect vulnerable sites such as Honeybourne’s sheep auction
field. The Parish council will shortly debate the matter and I am confident it will also support our
campaign given this site was ranked by residents as the most important site to protect from
housing development. However while we await the changes regarding central planning policies,
developers are brutally jumping on any land they can, using underhanded tactics to try and pass
housing developments before the new planning policies are made. The new Localism Act is a
step in the right direction, and if truly embraced by the district authority, planning permission on
this site will be refused. But I do not want to rely just on that, even though the site is ruled out of
the SHLAA and the Local plan, opportunistic developers will stop at nothing to get planning
permission granted.
We as local parishioners are like ‘David and Goliath’ and desperately need all the support we
can to stop irresponsible, irreversible and damaging developments proposed by Sharba Homes
and therefore we would be extremely grateful for any assistance you may be able to offer.
Thank you for taking the time to read this letter and we hope to hear from you shortly.
Yours sincerely
Mrs Carole Graves
Tel: 01386 830436
Mob. 07795364085
“When money talks, the truth is silent.”