The Trust has objected to proposals for a large new development at Bushfield Camp which have been submitted to Winchester City Council for outline planning permission. The plans would build over of a Site of Importance for Nature Conservation (SINC), designated in recognition of its local importance for key species and habitats, severing the local Nature Recovery Network.
Over the past half-century, Bushfield Camp has naturally rewilded from a brownfield site into a haven for diverse flora and fauna, including Cinnabar moth, Spotted Flycatcher, Grizzled Skipper, Dingy Skipper, Small Heath, Linnet, and Red Kite, Bullfinch, Linnet, Song Thrush, Turtle Dove, Yellowhammer, among many others. Bushfield camp is fortunate to have some of Winchester’s last remaining relic chalk grassland, a priority habitat which can hold immense biodiversity value but is disappearing fast both locally and nationally. It also holds other priority habitats including Lowland Meadows and Lowland Mixed Deciduous Woodland, serving as a key link in the Nature Recovery Network, fostering connectivity within the broader landscape and the nearby designated sites.
Simultaneously, Bushfield Camp has become an integral part of the local community, enjoyed and loved as an essential green and wild space. It is clear from the local opposition to the plans, that Bushfield Camp is a well-used and valued green space for local residents. Over the years there has been numerous campaigns to effectively protect the site as green space or a ‘village green’ but none have yet been successful.
The recent nature emergency declaration by Winchester City Council in September 2023 underscores the urgent need for nature’s recovery locally, nationally and globally. Bushfield Camp, as a designated Site of Importance for Nature Conservation (SINC) and a crucial component of the Nature Recovery Network, occupies a central role in realising these objectives. The proposed development, with its potential loss of the SINC habitat and adverse impacts on the Nature Recovery Network, stands in direct contrast to the council's nature emergency declaration. These sites are designated locally for a reason: they are important for wildlife and must be protected.
See the planning application and give the Council your views by the deadline of 7 December 2023.