Lullingstone and the Ancient Canopy

Lullingstone Country Park has been chosen as one of the 70 ancient woodlands and 70 ancient trees that will make up the Ancient Canopy, part of The Queen’s Green Canopy, the network of tree planting to commemorate the Platinum Jubilee. 

Lullingstone’s veteran and ancient trees are well known locally, and the park itself is widely recognised as one of the jewels among Kent County Council’s country parks, but this is wonderful national recognition. You can find KCC’s media release here. We will be releasing more about our support for Kent’s celebration of the Platinum Jubilee in the coming days.

Consultation on Preston Hill and Country Parks Strategy in 2017

As I reported earlier this year, Kent County Council had considered a number of smaller Country Park sites, among them Preston Hill, for disposal. However, this was quickly - and rightly - reconsidered. In addition, the sites, which had been transferred to KCC's Property Division, came back to the Country Parks team.

The County Council will be consulting in the New Year on its renewed strategy for country parks. As part of this, it has written to anyone who expressed a view on the future of these smaller sites, asking them to contribute to the consultation. This will include any suggestions about the future of specific sites. Letters have also been sent to Parish Councils.

The letter states that groups such as wildlife charities have expressed an interest in becoming more involved in the running of the sites, which is very welcome. They will, however, remain under the overall stewardship of the County Council.

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.

Country parks - no change for Lullingstone

Back in the early autumn, there was considerable concern from Parish Councils in Darent Valley over a Prior Information Notice (PIN) issued by Kent County Council relating to the nine principal Country Parks that it operates, among them Lullingstone. The PIN, issued in late July (but only coming to the attention of Parish Councils, and me as a local Member, in September) was to test the market regarding interest from commercial or not for profit operators in operating one or more of these Country Parks, or bringing forward other proposals that could contribute to their better operation.

The concept of some external involvement in Country Parks has been on the table for a number of years, and KCC undertook a service review of Country Parks (as it has of many other services) in 2014. The PIN was one element that emerged from that review, alongside a 2014-17 strategy for Country Parks.
 
The unintentionally late communication of the PIN to Parish Councils - towards the end of the eight-week market testing process - added to local concerns. At the same time, KCC made clear that, at this point, it was committing itself to nothing more than to test the market for ideas. Any significant change arising from this would have been subject to extensive consultation.

I spoke directly with the officers leading the process, and the senior officer involved came to speak to the Lullingstone Liaison Group (which I chair and which brings together three Parish Councils and others with a strong interest in the park) in November.

The outcomes of the PIN were taken to a KCC internal board in December. It can now be confirmed that the County Council has responded to those who expressed an interest in the PIN, and that no organisation expressed an interest in Lullingstone Country Park.