Preston Hill sale deferred

While Lullingstone Park is not set for any major changes following the County Council's market engagement process last year, it had appeared to be a different story for another country park in the Darent Valley, Preston Hill between Shoreham and Eynsford. Preston Hill was one of five sites identified (under a different process) for potential disposal in the current financial year, and notices to this effect were published in the local press during the last week. This is a formal notice, not an advertisement for sale; the latter would follow if the County Council were to proceed with the disposal after consultation.

Preston Hill is certainly a very different proposition from Lullingstone; the County Council's reasoning for looking at possible disposal was that it is harder to access and lacks public facilities (including a car park) and so attracts relatively few visitors. This made it a poor fit with the County Council's Country Parks strategy, which aimed to focus resources on sites that are well-used by residents.

At the same time, Preston Hill is an environmentally sensitive site, being part of the Otford to Shoreham Downs Site of Special Scientific Interest, with rare chalk grassland and ancient woodland. This would clearly impose significant obligations on any potential buyer of the site. There is also a historic rifle range on site, which has been restored through a Natural England HLS (Higher Level Stewardship) capital grant and the maintenance of which would need to be ensured.

The County Council has, however, now announced that the disposal process for the five sites is being suspended, pending further consultation with local communities, seeking to ensure "that the sites remain open to the public and are financially viable." This sounds like a very welcome development, and I will post an update if and when I know more.