Residents come together to ‘save wildlife’ at Lowfield Lane, Balderton after Arkwood Developments submit plans for over 150 houses to Newark and Sherwood District Council
Over 50 people attended a peaceful protest to object to a planned 151-house development on a wildlife haven.
Balderton residents and members of OWL (Only Wildlife on Lowfield) gathered outside of Sainsbury's Balderton to walk down to Lowfield Lane yesterday (January 7).
The protest objected to the application for 151 homes on the site by Newark and Sherwood District Council’s own development company Arkwood Developments.
The Lowfield Lane site has been allocated for housing since 2013 and the authority was set to debate sending the council’s development plan to a planning inspector.
The campaigner's group has been organised by Vicky Hodgson and Des Kay, who have been consistently raising awareness of the campaign.
“We feel we raised awareness locally as much as we can but it is about keeping the message out there because it has been nearly a year since the planning notice went up and still haven’t made it to the planning committee,” said Vicky.
She added: “This protest was a way of encouraging people to keep signing the petition and keep the pressure on with the objections.”
The petition launched by the campaigners has over 2,000 signatures both on paper and online.
People can sign the petition at https://shorturl.at/kzAGW.
Vicky added: “I was really pleasantly surprised by how many new faces joined us from when we originally advertised and made everyone aware.
“It seemed to be mainly among residents but now it has become much bigger than just a few isolated residents, there was a lady from Claypole, which shows how it is also affecting people in the outlines.”
The planning application is said to cause a substantial loss of biodiversity and green space in the area, including barn owls.
In collaboration with another resident, Natalie Brown, a Facebook group – Balderton Wildlife – was created to share photos of wildlife across Balderton.
Other consultees raised objections including Balderton Parish Council, county highways and Notts Wildlife Trust.
