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About
Us
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Issues
Here
are some more issues that concern us at the moment
Coventry
Airport - We
oppose the expansion in the use of Coventry (Baginton)
Airport which threatens frequent, noisy passenger flights
- some at night - from 31st March 2004 -
more
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Hedgerows
- Hedges are a vital part
of the scenery of Warwickshire and a lot of effort is
going into recording them and campaigning for their
protection and enhancement ... more
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Planning
and Compulsory Purchase Bill - The
Planning Green Paper drew 15,000 responses
- the largest number in history - and nearly all very
critical.
The
Bill proposes the replacement of Structure Plans and
Local Plans with
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nebulous Local Development Frameworks
- a
bigger role for regional planning, without elected
assemblies to control it
- approval
of major infrastructure projects by Parliament in
a way that would remove people's rights to challenge
a project at local level
- faster
decisions with less public participation
- even
more pressure on the Appeal system
- priority
and privileges to "business", which seems
to be the lobby behind it all. ... more
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Airports
White Paper - Whilst
we all breathe an enormous sigh of relief that Warwickshire's
countryside has been saved from the awful threat of
a huge new airport between Coventry and Rugby, we also
shed tears over the predict and provide message that
the White Paper sets out.
The
plans to start low cost passenger operations from Coventry's
Baginton Airport have been left in the air leaving local
rural communities, as well as a large swathe of Coventry's
eastern suburbs, with battles still to fight.
The
most devastating decision of all being the support in
the White Paper for a second runway at Birmingham, which
will cut a swathe of countryside out of the ever-diminishing
Meriden Gap Green Belt. This decision alone will require
the M42 to be widened, putting even more acres of the
Meriden Gap under tarmac.
see
also Press Releases. |
Cluttered
Countryside - A
campaign to reduce the excessive 'clutter' of obtrusive
signs from town and rural roads across Coventry and Warwickshire
has been launched by the Warwickshire branch of the Campaign
to Protect Rural England (CPRE) to research the scale
of the problem in the county before offering possible
solutions.
The work by the registered charity has been made possible
thanks to a grant from the Heart of England Community
Foundation. Its award of £1,650 has paid for the
first phase of the initiative to identic and document
'black spots' in the county, which is expected to be completed
by December next year.
The work is largely being carried out by volunteers at
the Warwickshire CPRE, which is the fastest growing branch
in the country boasting more than 750 members.
Warwickshire CPRE is grateful for the grant because it
relies heavily on the work of about 20 active volunteers
and this is a campaign we have been waiting to launch
for some time in support of the national Cluttered Countryside
initiative."
Work has got underway to create a dossier of information.
The CPRE is urging people to contact them with 'black-spots'
and has written to all 207 parish councils in the county
over the problem.
The Cluttered Countryside initiative refers to issues
surrounding excessive signage, of public and private origin,
and other eyesores such as inappropriate and mobile advertisements
which degrade the environment, especially in rural settlements
and country roads. Their detrimental impact frequently
erodes local distinctiveness with ugly, inconsistently
designed, confusing and often unnecessary paraphernalia.
Effective and concise signage will not only improve our
environment but will have a spin-off benefit in safety,
time- saving and congestion.
The CPRE aims to work with local communities to identify
and document the 'black-spots' and to present them in
a dossier. They will then hand over their findings to
local government along with constructive suggestions on
how to solve the problems.
Work is now well underway but we are extremely grateful
for the support of the Heart of England Community Foundation
for the support they have given us.
Alison McCall, Director of the Heart of England Community
Foundation, which handed out more than £500,000
to community groups last year, is delighted to have helped.
Anyone wanting more information about awards from the
Heart of England Community Foundation can telephone 024
7688 4176.
People wishing to report excessive road signs can contact
the
Warwickshire branch of the CPRE on 01926 494597. |
Regional
Planning Guidance (RPG) - The
West Midlands RPG was published in November 2001 and
much work was required to complete responses by 30
January. A 'Public Examination' is to be held in June.
A major issue will be the Coventry-Solihull-Warwickshire
High Technology Corridor'. It is difficult to see
how 'High Technology Clusters' can be developed without
contravening policies of restraint and the Green Belt.
RPG's
strategy is supposed to be aimed at urban regeneration
of the conurbation yet taking greenfield employment
land and widening the M42 seems to be in conflict
with this aim ...
more
Local
Planning Issues
The
Warwickshire Structure Plan has been published.
Reviews
of Local Plans are at different stages. Nuneaton and
Bedworth and Stratford-on-Avon have been published.
Warwick, Rugby and North Warwickshire are awaited.
Coventry's
Unitary Development Plan has been adopted but those
for Solihull and Birmingham have yet to go to Public
Inquiry.
We
await a decision on the proposal for a Motorway Service
Area at Catherine-de-Barnes.
There
is a lot more information on what is happening in the
County area if you click ...
more |
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M40
Shire Hall,
Warwick
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