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4th November, 2024

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Dear Supporters,

 

To our great delight, we can finally announce that Juniper Hill Field has been purchased by Gloucestershire Wildlife Trust thanks to a very generous anonymous donation. This means the remarkable 20 acre hilltop field with its beautiful orchids, skylarks and stunning views has been saved for future generations.

This was the dream of our two-year campaign and the odds against us seemed impossible at many points, but today we are celebrating a stunning victory.

 

We made the case for saving this limestone grassland – part of the 1.5% that remains in the Cotswolds after decades of intensive arable farming – and we have been heard. We are thrilled.

 

Our hope now is that the field will continue to go from strength to strength as a haven for wildlife. Careful management through light grazing by cattle will help insect life to flourish, wild flowers to spread while the development of scrub along field boundaries will integrate it into the neighbouring three Sites of Special Scientific Interest at Frith Wood, Juniper Hill and Bull’s Cross to ensure a remarkable mosaic of different habitats for wildlife. In the wider area, the field will be a key link between the commons of Stroud and the National Trust’s land at Ebworth and beyond to Cranham Common, ensuring the kind of connectivity necessary for wildlife to adapt to climate crisis.

 

Many will have seen how Woodlands.co.uk, the previous owner, had split the field into small plots and were trying to sell them to lifestyle purchasers looking for an off grid rural retreat. We had deep concerns that the only access to the field for the prospective owners was along an old bridleway through the stunning beechwoods of Frith Wood with the risk of damaging the trees, and disturbing the wildlife of this important SSSI.

 

 Our campaign won support from Stroud District Council, the Council for the Protection of Rural England, Gloucestershire Wildlife Trust, the Green Party and the National Trust; we got coverage both locally and nationally. Local residents, broadcaster Mary Portas and actor Josh O’Connor, threw their weight behind us as patrons. We gathered well over a thousand signatories on a petition to Woodland.co.uk, and nearly a hundred attended a ‘coffee morning’ on the field in October 2023. We can’t thank all our supporters enough: you have made a difference.

 

We remain deeply concerned at the business practices of Woodland.co.uk which purports to have an interest in conservation. This field was inappropriate for their form of development but attempts at dialogue were ignored.

 

A small team of local residents, the Friends of Juniper Hill Field, remain deeply committed to the future of this area, and will work to support Gloucestershire Wildlife Trust as it develops its plans. We want to encourage people’s knowledge and love of this remarkable place and hope next year to have guided walks, as well as a public meeting to discuss footpaths, and training for volunteers to do surveys of the wildlife. We will continue to keep you in touch with events and news so please encourage neighbours and local walkers to sign up. If you are interested in any of the above, please get in touch. We would love to hear from you.

 

Finally, at the heart of this campaign have been two remarkable women, Joy and Hanny who live in the neighbouring valleys of Slad and Painswick. For four decades they have met each other on the hill between the two valleys at Juniper Hill Field, on regular walks. Their love and deep knowledge of the area has inspired us all.

 

The photo below was taken a fortnight ago when Joy and Hanny and a few of the Friends met with Emma Hutchins, the director of conservation at Gloucestershire Wildlife Trust on Juniper Hill Field to raise a glass in celebration!

 

Please join us at The Woolpack on November 19th at 6.30pm to celebrate!

 

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L to R: Emma Hutchins (GWT), Sue, Hanny, Joy, Madeleine and Annie.

Photo of the 8th October walk on Juniper Hill Field in support of the campaign

taken by Deborah Roberts, Landscape & Conservation Photographer / Friend of Juniper Hill Field

www.deborahroberts.biz

Meadow with Wildflowers IMG_20220701_091836_edited_edited_edited.jpg
Newsletter Archive

To the great delight of the Friends of Juniper Hill Field, the BAFTA and Globe winning actor Josh O’Connor has joined the campaign as a patron alongside the wonderful Mary Portas. . .

 WE NOW REALLY NEED YOUR HELP

 The Friends of Juniper Hill Field have drawn up two Open Letters – one to Gloucestershire Wildlife Trust and one to Angus Hanton, the CEO of Woodlands.co.uk. . . .

26 October 2023

Here is a disturbing cautionary tale of what happens after the sale of plots by Woodlands.co.uk.

A deeply concerned resident of a small Devon village called Oakford contacted the Friends of Juniper Hill Field to tell us their story. . .

12 October 2023

A huge thankyou to all those who joined us to walk up to Juniper Hill Field on Sunday 8th October. The turnout was terrific - with over seventy people from the surrounding area. Lots of conversations about how much people have loved walking the field for years. . .

29 September 2023

Thankyou for all your support. We are very moved by the comments many have sent to the website. ‘Heartbroken,’ ‘it’s a tragedy’ are just some of the strong feelings many of you expressed about a ‘special place.’ . . .

After the terrific article by Patrick Barkham in The Guardian we are delighted that BBC Radio Gloucestershire made our campaign over Juniper Hill Field into its lead item on Tuesday 19th September . . .

Over the last four months a group of concerned residents have been exploring every aspect of the history of Juniper Hill Field and the plans of Woodlands.co.uk. We have put together a detailed summary of our research on the savejuniperhillfield.co.uk website . . .

We have been working hard following many avenues to stall the development on Juniper Hill Field and have been learning everyday. Many, many people near and far away have been volunteering their expertise to help us in this endeavour . . .

As we mentioned in our recent update, we are planning to have Juniper Hill Field nominated as an Asset of Community Value and we need 21 local people to back the nomination. . .

In the last few weeks, the Friends of Juniper Hill Fields have made a lot of progress. We have reached out to Natural England, Gloucestershire Wildlife Trust, Stroud District Council, Gloucestershire County Council and the Campaign for the Preservation of Rural England. . .

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