John Clare Countryside Trust Urges Peterborough City Council to Drop 3,000 Home Proposals

Strategic Insights -

The John Clare Countryside Trust, inspired by the famous poet John Clare, has appealed to Peterborough City Council to remove a proposed housing allocation north of Ailsworth and the A47 from its draft Local Plan. The trust argues that allowing 3,000 homes to be built on the land would pose irreversible ecological damage to ancient woodland, limestone grasslands, and priority species. This would also harm a site of national cultural heritage linked to John Clare's work and contradict climate resilience goals and green infrastructure aims.

Key Takeaways:

  • The John Clare Countryside Trust has appealed to Peterborough City Council to drop proposed housing allocation north of Ailsworth and the A47 from its draft Local Plan.
  • The trust argues that allowing 3,000 homes to be built on the land would cause irreversible ecological damage to ancient woodland, limestone grasslands, and priority species.
  • The proposed development would harm a site of national cultural heritage linked to John Clare's work and contradict climate resilience goals and green infrastructure aims.
  • The trust is supported by organizations such as the RSPB, Wildlife Trusts, and Nene Park Trust.
  • The John Clare Countryside covers land west of Peterborough stretching from the river Nene in the south to the river Welland in the north.
  • The council's public consultation on the proposed Local Plan ended on May 29, and submissions will be considered in the near future.

Statistics:

  • 3,000 homes proposed to be built on the land
  • 20 years: the duration of the Local Plan, which sets out areas of acceptable development through to 2044
  • £ millions: the investment promised by the major landscape scale recovery programme
  • 100%: the risk posed to a major landscape scale recovery programme by the proposed development

Sources:

  • '[https://www.peterboroughtoday.co.uk/news/people/vision-unveiled-for-nature-recovery-in-poet-john-clare-countryside-between-peterborough-and-stamford-4710104](https://www.peterboroughtoday.co.uk/news/people/vision-unveiled-for-nature-recovery-in-poet-john-clare-countryside-between-peterborough-and-stamford-4710104)'
  • '[https://imagestore.jpimedia.uk/webimg/b25lY21zOjY2ZjkwMzg4LTM5ODItNDA3MS1hNTA2LWY4ZmI4YjE0NjEwNTphZDcyNmRmMS04NmExLTQ1MDItYTJkZC1kOGZiZDViYzllNzQ=.jpg](https://imagestore.jpimedia.uk/webimg/b25lY21zOjY2ZjkwMzg4LTM5ODItNDA3MS1hNTA2LWY4ZmI4YjE0NjEwNTphZDcyNmRmMS04NmExLTQ1MDItYTJkZC1kOGZiZDViYzllNzQ=.jpg)'
  • '[https://www.rspb.org.uk](https://www.rspb.org.uk)'
  • '[https://www.neparktrust.org.uk](https://www.neparktrust.org.uk)'