Great Ouseburn community look to protect village from developers by buying up Townend farmland and creating nature reserve

Farmer and Ouseburn division councillor Arnold Warneken was speaking after a public meeting at Great Ouseburn Village Hall near Boroughbridge heard a scheme backed by Dame Judi Dench to buy 20-acre Town End Field only had until February 28 to secure £300,000 to buy the land.

The beauty spot inspired a drawing by writer Anne Bronte when she worked as a governess for a family nearby and has attracted many visitors, including the father and brother of Dame Judi, who said the green space was "well worth saving".

A prospectus produced by the Upper Ouse Conservation Trust states alongside establishing a nature reserve to enhance biodiversity and to contribute to nature recovery, it is hoped to “continue to farm the land” and set aside a small area as a playing field for the village school.

Nick Oswald, headteacher of Great Ouseburn Primary, told the meeting that creating a playing field for the children next to the school would be an “absolute game-changer” as it lacked the space to host its our own sports days.

He said having space for such activities as nature walks, orienteering, pond dipping, shelter building, tree climbing would take the “curriculum offer to the next level".

Residents were told if the fundraising target was met, it would “strengthen community sense of place and connection to nature” and that a permissive footpath would be created to enable people to experience and enjoy the nature reserve.

The document also outlines ambitions to adopt sustainable land management practices to improve and diversify habitats through a community benefit society which offers collective ownership and the same tax benefits for donors as a charity.

The meeting heard numerous residents express enthusiasm to support the scheme and experienced conservation land managers and regenerative farmers would be available to work closely with the trust to help maximise biodiversity across the site.

It is understood the vendors have confirmed the trust is their preferred bidder and that they would not be seeking higher bids.

Members of the trust said while Defra would not fund the purchase of the land there was “an incredible amount of money available” for the operational activities of the project.

Residents heard the new farming support programme replacing the Common Agricultural Policy had a huge range of different grant streams, such as landscape recovery and, as most of the land is thought to be registered as agricultural, there was potential for Sustainable Farming Incentive and Countryside Stewardship funding.

Coun Warneken told residents the proposed alternative for the parcel of land could spell disaster for mature trees on the site, providing an incentive to “dig deep”.

He said: “If you don’t do something about this you might end up with your own Sycamore Gap here.”

After the meeting, Coun Warneken said previously the land had been cultivated on a small scale on the frontage and as it had a high water table, it would wreck modern machinery.

He said: “The biggest threat isn’t lack of farming, it’s potential development. The road frontage might fall into a quite easy category in the council’s call for sites for four to six houses. Without owning this you can’t prevent that.”

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