Category: Community

Parish Biodiversity

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Building on its monitoring of the progress of the Parish Council’s Biodiversity Policy, the February meeting of the council approved a prioritisation of modified objectives for 2025. Among those that ranked highest were:

  • ensuring the commitment to enhancing the local biodiversity in the Littleton Village Design Statement (LVDS) is vigorously pursued
  • continuing to advocate that the future SJMB development achieves the best biodiversity gain, including both the adoption of the Candidate SINC and for biodiversity-sensitive public access
  • advocating the retention of the Winchester-Littleton settlement gap
  • undertaking a review of the Conservation Management Plan for the Tumulus Field
  • ensuring the various flower beds and meadow areas under the Parish Council’s control adopt a ‘planting for biodiversity’ approach

Other notable objectives include:

  • enhancing the biodiversity in and around the Recreation Ground and Conservation Field (including hedges and trees, maintenance regimes and use of chemicals)
  • ensuring biodiversity matters are considered in the parish council’s reviews of planning applications
  • encouraging further volunteer involvement such as developing neighbourhood meadows and surveys at key parish locations, as well as participation in ‘citizen science’ initiatives such as the recent Big Garden Birdwatch and the Big Butterfly Count (July-Aug 2025)

Cllr David Tozer of the Parish Action on the Climate Emergency (PACE) comments: “It’s astonishing that even at parish-scale level, there are still so many opportunities to give nature a helping hand, whether that’s through tweaking our council practices or encouraging new initiatives. We’d love to hear from local residents of any initiatives they could help with or instigate.” 

If interested, please contact the Parish Clerk at clerk@lhpc.org.uk.

Sir John Moore Barracks fields

Sir John Moore Barracks update

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The Defence Infrastructure Organisation (DIO), the developers, have now produced their Masterplan for the development of the Barracks site (see https://democracy.winchester.gov.uk/documents/s30797/CAB3473%20Appendix%20SJM%20Masterplan-FINAL.pdf)

On 12th February, Vice-Chair, David Tozer, presented the position of the Parish Council to the public meeting of the Winchester City Council (WCC) Cabinet.  The Parish Council stressed three main points:

  • it has never opposed new housing on the existing, developed part of the Barracks site
  • it continues to have grave concerns that any endorsement of the Masterplan is highly premature, pending the outcome of the public examination by a planning inspector of the WCC’s own emerging local plan, that governs considerations around the site’s development (Policy W2) and the definition of the settlement gap between Winchester and Littleton (Policy NE7)
  • the reluctance to endorse the Candidate Site of Importance for Nature Conservation (SINC) covering the Northern Fields, a matter that the Parish Council has consistently argued strongly for

After over an hour’s discussion, the Cabinet agreed to endorse the DIO’s Concept Masterplan and to defer taking a decision on the acceptance of the Candidate SINC until after consideration of an anticipated more detailed outline planning application from the DIO.

[A recording of the meeting is available on WCC’s website at: https://democracy.winchester.gov.uk/ieListDocuments.aspx?CId=136&MID=4670].

The Parish Council is highly concerned about the deferral of the status of the Candidate SINC because it increases the likelihood of development being allowed on the Northern Fields. Additionally, an endorsement of the proposed Masterplan seems too soon, as it could conflict with any recommendations from the Local Plan Inspector.

Whilst this is disappointing, the Cabinet were at pains to make clear that the Masterplan was flexible and could only be regarded as showing a ‘direction of travel’. There is potentially still scope to modify it, which makes the imminent next round of DIO’s engagement with the local community vital (details to be announced in due course) in order to ensure as far as possible we get a development that sufficiently benefits this northern part of Winchester which is currently experiencing a variety of pressures.

What can we do about traffic?

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Traffic on Harestock Road
Traffic on Harestock Rd

The Parish Council remains concerned about the amount and type of traffic which passes through our parish. We live on the edge of a busy city where both commercial and residential building works are taking place. It’s not surprising that things are getting busier but that doesn’t mean that we just have to put our fingers in our ears – or our heads in the sand. On the one hand, it is extremely difficult to prevent traffic using roads. They form part of a national network of public highways. Yet there are actions that may help to make our experience of road use better, and the Parish Council has been exploring this for some time and on a number of fronts.

Speed indicator device on Harestock Rd
Speed indicator device on Harestock Rd

For example, we have been collecting data about vehicle speed at various points in the parish using a mobile speed indicator device. This helps us to present a case for lowering the speed limit which can improve safety and, to some extent, noise. Hampshire County Council is recommending lowering the speed limit from 40mph to 30mph on Harestock Road but needs the support of the police to do so. Strangely, if people are driving nearer to 30mph than 40mph on average, they would be more inclined to lend their support. We have also conducted a week-long survey of the traffic along Harestock Road to record volume, speed, vehicle type and peak times. Again, we are using this data to inform decision makers about the impact of traffic on the lives of residents and to make a case for some mitigation of the effects.

Over a number of years, we have explored options for improving the experiences of pedestrians, particularly along roads with no pavements in Littleton. Unfortunately, the costs of addressing this have proven too extensive. We will continue to explore options and may find opportunities associated with the development of the Sir John Moore Barracks.

Finally, the Parish Council has been meeting with those managing the Anaerobic Digester which is being built just beyond the Three Maids Hill Roundabout on the A272. Although the vast majority of their traffic will not travel through our parish, there may be times of the year when farmers will be transporting feedstock from the west, leading to tractor/trailer traffic along Harestock Road. As a result of our discussions, the company is well aware of the need to avoid this as much as possible, to consider alternative routes or methods of transportation and to provide us with information about if/when there is likely to be a short term increase in traffic. To date, there are no planned movements of this sort for 2025.

We will keep talking to the people who make decisions about roads and traffic, will ensure that our local City and County Councillors are aware of the impact of increasing volume and weights of traffic and will continue to seek ways to improve the safety and well-being of residents.