Activists celebrate as land given protected status

53 minutes ago

Imogen LeeNorfolk

News image — The Harding's Pits Community Association Group campaigned for three decades to keep it as a wild leisure space

Shaun Whitmore/BBC A drone shot of a large green area with lots of trees. A river runs down the left side of the green space. — The Harding's Pits Community Association Group campaigned for three decades to keep it as a wild leisure space

Campaigners who have been trying to stop the development of a town's green space have celebrated it being given "village green status" by a council.

Harding's Pits, seven acres of land beside the River Great Ouse in King's Lynn, had previously been earmarked for a housing development and a supermarket before the Borough Council of King's Lynn and West Norfolk applied to Norfolk County Council for the status.

The Harding's Pits Community Association Group has campaigned for the past 30 years to keep the area as a leisure space.

Rick Morrish, 64, the director of the group, said it was a "really great decision... we've struggled to get the village green status for 30 years".

The application was considered by Norfolk County Council's Planning (Regulatory) Committee on Tuesday.

Morrish told Chris Goreham on BBC Radio Norfolk that "this year's administration got right behind" the cause and it would "give more legal status to protect the site... we're safeguarding it as a public open space".

SUPPLIED A group of 10 people stand looking into the camera smiling. They are all wearing different coloured clothing, including green, red, blue and black. The image was taken on a warm day, the sun is shining on them. The group of people are in shorts and wearing hats. In the middle is Alexandra Kemp, Norfolk County Councillor dressed in a red dress holding up a piece of paper. A man who is standing next to her has an owl mask on his face. — Alexandra Kemp and campaigners have been working together to attain protected status for the area

Alexandra Kemp, an Independent councillor at the borough council, said she has held nine public events in favour of keeping Harding's Pits as a space for nature.

"After the long campaign that we fought since 2017 with residents to stop the Borough Council of King's Lynn and West Norfolk putting traffic on Harding's Way, the borough council's support is very important and now protects all of Harding's Pits west of Harding's Way," she said.

Kemp also campaigned with residents in July against a new car park that the borough council sought to build next to Harding's Pits.

Shaun Whitmore/BBC A large bronze statue of a whale's tail positioned amongst greenery. — Visitors can see a whale sculpture in one section of Harding's Pits

Morrish said the Harding's Pits Association Group was formed in 2004, adding that the green space was originally a clay pit in the 19th Century, before being used as a landfill site.

"There is actually rubbish underneath the site," he added.

Harding's Pits was then turned into a public space in the early 1960s.

Shaun Whitmore/BBC An aerial view of a large green space with a town beyond it. The river is in the foreground. — The Harding's Pits is located alongside the River Great Ouse and has cut through routes to King's Lynn town centre

The site is currently used for dog walking, accessing King's Lynn town centre, picking fruit such as blackberries and for bird and wildlife spotting, Morrish said.

He told the BBC that "a hundred species of birds" had been recorded there and it was home to "three or four regular reptile residents, including a lot of lizards" who had enjoyed the warm temperatures this year.

"Within the town, this is quite a rare asset to have and that's why we think it's so important," he added.

He said the site has grown over the years, with a new community orchid and a national art project, where artists have planted a circle of oak trees.

Borough Council of King's Lynn & West Norfolk A man in brown jacket and trousers is crouched down on grass, smiling at the camera. — Michael de Whalley said the village green status is very welcome news for South Lynn

Michael de Whalley, the cabinet member for climate change and biodiversity on Borough Council of King's Lynn and West Norfolk, said: "This is very welcome news for South Lynn and an important final step in a journey that the community has been pursuing for at least 30 years."

He added that local people valued and enjoyed places such as Harding's Pits and surrounding green spaces, where habitats could flourish.

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