Bristol group joins others in fight to save South West green belt

A Whitchurch pressure group protesting against homes being built on the green belt has united campaigners from across the South West to fight their causes more effectively.

The Protect Whitchurch Green Belt Alliance is committed to stopping more than 8,000 homes being built in the village which they say would rip the heart out of their community.

And in a meeting last week it was confirmed that about 30 action groups in the region have joined forces in a bid to make the government sit up and take notice.

The groups have come together under an umbrella called Save our Green Spaces which is supported by Friends of the Earth and the Campaign to Protect Rural England.

Local groups to have signed up include Whitchurch, Long Ashton, Warmley and Shortwood.

All groups will continue to operate in their local areas but will be able to draw on the experiences, expertise and knowledge of other groups in the region to help in their fight.

Mike Parsons, chairman of the Protect Whitchurch Green Belt Alliance, said: "When we started doing research it came to light that there are dozens of groups doing what we were doing but were not big enough to make a noise.

"We will still remain active as a local group but we can feed off and share the knowledge and expertise of other groups across the South West.

"We then thought that politicians will not be bothered about tiny campaign groups but if they came together and made a lot of noise then people would have to sit up and take notice."

Whitchurch campaigner Jo Haywood is leading the publicity for the new campaign which will have a stand at the Bath and West Show between May 27 and 30.

She said: "It is very exciting. Campaign groups from across the South West of England, from Cheltenham to Truro in deepest Cornwall, have come together under an umbrella called Save our Green Spaces.

"There are already about 30 groups involved and we will continue to expand.

"We feel that with a united voice comes strength. Rather than being seen as Nimbys we would be seen as a socially and environmentally aware group.

"We want to protect green spaces across the South West and would like to see decisions about green spaces taken locally instead of by central government.

"There are three million houses to be built in the UK with 500,000 of those being built in the South West. Forty per cent of those are destined for green fields or green belt land.

"Under the Regional Spacial Strategy there are 117,350 homes to be built in Bristol and Bath by 2026 and of those 35,500 are expected to be built on greenbelt land.

"On June 6 our media campaign will be launched with a newly revamped website that will feature maps of all the areas threatened across the South West, links to all the individual campaign groups and information about how to contact your MP to lodge your concerns.

"We will also be launching a campaign entitled Who Needs Green Space? Each campaign group will submit an iconic image representing their area of people who will suffer if their green space is affected, such as farmers, Girl Guides or rugby players.

"We then want to get MP Hazel Blears, who is Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, to come and meet with us so we can air our concerns."