Despite an apparent lull in proceedings over the festive period, the STAUNCH team continues to be busy behind the scenes. There had been an expectation that the developers of the Castle Manor Farm site would submit a planning application before Christmas. In the end, no such submission was made. Even so, a full application from Newlands Developments (also behind the plans at Elton) could drop at any moment and STAUNCH continue to prepare for that eventuality.

Look out for a full write-up of the latest news in the next edition of the Titchmarsh Times before the end of the month.

Communications Role

In the meantime, STAUNCH would like to hear from anyone who might be interested in taking on the team’s communications role. The person should be comfortable liaising with the press and the prospect of speaking on television and/or radio. If that sounds like something you would like to do, then please send an email to: info@staunchcampaign.org.

Report Sightings and Upload Media

As STAUNCH continues to build a case against the twin planning proposals, villagers are reminded that they can still do their bit to help. Any wildlife sightings on either the Glebe Land or Castle Manor Farm sites should be reported to the Northants Biodiversity Records Centre. This is crucial as the sites are close to an important wetland and often used by migrating birds and other wildlife.

Also, any photos of traffic congestion and flooding, scans of newspaper articles and related material can all be uploaded on the the STAUNCH website. (Some members of the public have already done this on the STAUNCH Facebook page.) Any material you can share will help STAUNCH build a more solid argument against the proposals.

The developers have to make a case that there is a “need” for the plans to go ahead. Conversely, STAUNCH have to demonstrate reasons why the developments would be detrimental. This is particularly important in regard to the impact on local roads and the environment.

The developers will also try to prove that there is a need for jobs in the local area. Like many people you’ve probably seen adverts and news items claiming that this is far from the truth. In fact there is a lot of anecdotal evidence to suggest that a lot of workers are being bussed in from much further away.

If you have photos or articles that you think might support our case, please upload them on the STAUNCH website.

Look for the following links on the STAUNCH homepage… (click to visit)