Support

Representation ID: 11273

Received: 14/09/2021

Respondent: Dr Kim Osman

I support the Council’s continued protection of countryside at Lapal, Illey, Coombeswood,Uffmoor, Hayley Green, Lutley and Foxcote, following a formal review of the Green Belt.
Circa 1989, Dudley Council, following a previous Green Belt review, improved the Public Rights of Way network in these areas, by working in collaboration with local volunteer groups. Following on from that, the Council promoted enjoyment of this countryside, by the public, for informal recreation. They supported the production of walk leaflets explaining the historic, landscape and ecological significance of this countryside.
The Council even contributed £20,000 towards The Woodland Trust purchasing Uffmoor Wood, despite this being just outside the Borough Boundary and coming under Bromsgrove. They appreciated the important relationship between this ancient coppice woodland and neighbouring farmland, including Tack Farm, which is the site of a former Anglow -Saxon Mill. (Notwic Mill).
The countryside protected by Green belt designation is rich in history. At Lapal and Illey there are the remains of Halesowen Abbey, which is a Scheduled Ancient Monument of National Importance. At Lutley we have a Conservation Area associated with historic Lutley Mill and the green lane that links it to the hamlet of Lutley, which was once held by the Canons of Wolverhampton. Foxcote, which forms the setting of the Iron Age Fort on Wychbury Hill, is archaeologically rich with frequent finds of flint arrow heads, flint scrapers, axes and other tools. It was the site of the ancient hunting summer camps, and, in part, this explains the scatter of historic ‘finds’. The countryside is important to people from far afield, and within the wider landscape encompasses the famed and beautiful Clent Hills, a major area of which is owned and managed by the National Trust. We must also remember Hagley Hall and Park, which of couse includes a major proportion of Wychbury Hill, the prominence of which is acknowledged in the 18th century, by George Lyttleton, in the creation of Hagley Park, which is now a Grade 1 Listed Garden. On Wychbury Hill are two significant follies – The Temple of Theseus and The Obelisk, exploiting the landscape dominance of the hill and the presence of the Fort. The whole of this area, including that within Dudley Borough, is of regional importance as an amenity for the welfare of a large population and in its own right is of landscape, historic, ecological and informal recreational importance. It would be so simple to damage the area with inappropriate developments and associated infrastructure. Please acknowledge receipt of this letter,