The beautiful countryside around Keswick, in the heart of the Lake District National Park, is threatened with development. There are proposals to build on a series of green field sites around the town, extending the built up area into the open countryside. One of these sites is between the road at the edge of the town (Springs Road) and Castlehead Woods.
The field forms part of a collar of land surrounding the Castlehead Site of Special Scientific Interest. It is managed as a wildflower meadow and as grazing land for one of the last remaining dairy herds in the Lake District. The field supports a range of wild flowers and wild animals – hares, deer, owls, buzzards and bats, and overwintering migrating greylag geese. The woods next to the field are ancient broadleaf woodland, and are home to some of the few remaining red squirrels in the area.
Sign our Petition
The deadline for making comments to the Lake District National Park Authority was 30th November. But the National Park Authority will take several months to make a final decision on the site. We would still like to be able to present as many signatures as possible of people who want to protect the field between Springs Road and Castlehead Wood, while recognizing the need for affordable housing. So, if you haven’t yet done so, please add your name to our petition.
More Information
Affordable Housing
There is a need in Keswick for more affordable housing, for current residents and young adults wanting to be able to set up their own homes. More homes will be needed, and they will need to be affordable.
The current proposals
The Lake District National Park has over the last few years produced a series of documents, proposing allocation of sites within the park to either Housing, Employment, or Open Space. In the Keswick area, they have suggested that five sites be allocated for housing; most of these are on the edge of town, and two of them are alongside popular walking routes going out of town.
Although the sites are to be allocated for affordable housing, there is no consideration in the proposals of what the people needing the housing will be able to afford, or what the actual costs will be.
Alternatives
There are many alternative sites within the town boundaries that either were not considered at all, or were not allocated to housing. Many houses have and will continue to be built on smaller plots within the town, quite a few existing residential properties are in the process of being replaced, and many existing properties are empty. There are many opportunities for affordable housing within the town, without needing to consider greenfield sites that would extend the town boundaries into what is currently open countryside.
Reality
If these proposals for allocation for housing are approved, the National Park expects that houses will be built. These fields will never be green again. Rejecting these proposals does not mean that affordable housing won’t be built — the need exists, and will have to be met — but it does mean that the environment that makes Keswick special will be protected.
About Us
We are a group of Keswick and area residents, concerned about the proposals for development on greenfield sites on the edge of town. We are doing research into local housing needs and costs, availability of other sites, and suitability of the proposed sites. While recognising the need for housing and employment in the town, and caring about all the sites, we as a group are looking specifically at the site between Springs Road and Castlehead Woods. Most of our work will be concentrated on protecting that site, but many of our findings relate to the town as a whole and to the other proposed sites.