View of the National Park from the Grassroots
Local environmental group, the South Downs Society, today (8 June 2010) gave the grassroots’ view on some of the most important early issues facing the National Park Authority. It recommends the Authority employs its own rangers as well as ecology and other experts to protect the South Downs into the future and to ensure the public get the most from the UK’s newest National Park. They are also calling for a lot of the workload on planning to be delegated back to the local authorities.
The Society, with its 2,200 members along the length of the Downs, has strong views on how the National Park Authority might best go about its business and is keen to work closely with the new body and help it protect and enhance the National Park.
Jacquetta Fewster, Director of the South Downs Society, said “These are exciting times for those who care about the South Downs and we want the new Park Authority to have the best chance of achieving the challenges set for it. The South Downs Society is recommending the Authority runs its own ranger service and employs specialist staff such as ecologists, archaeologists and building conservation and design experts.
“But we also think the Authority would be wise to delegate much of its routine planning control work back to the local councils so it can concentrate its own efforts on other areas. Establishing planning policy for the Downs and handling the most important planning applications should take up most of the Authority’s time, in our view. In making our points to the Park Authority, the South Downs Society is working extremely closely with other environmental groups within our South Downs Network.”
Jacquetta Fewster continued, “Decisions made now are not immutable but they will have a major impact right at the beginning of the National Park’s existence. Our Society wants exactly the same thing as the National Park Authority – a beautiful landscape for the public to enjoy – and we will work hard to help the Authority succeed.”
The Park Authority was set up in April this year and has twelve months to organise itself before taking over responsibility for planning and other matters from local councils in April 2011. The members of the Authority, most appointed by those councils, the rest by central government, are currently receiving briefings on their forthcoming duties and being invited to make decisions on staffing levels, office accommodation and IT systems, and just how they plan to work with the wide range of existing public and voluntary sector and landowning bodies with an interest in the National Park.