Ruscombe Valley Action Group newsletter out now!

The newsletter will be arriving over the next week in Randwick, Ruscombe and Whiteshill. There will also be a leaflet prepared and organised by the Hospitals League of Friends and the cross-party coordinating group of Stroud District councilors fighting the cuts. I am on that committee and we are supporting the League in their fight - more of that and the actions we all can take are in other Blogs on this website.

That leaflet will hopefully be going to every house in the District - I've got 130 or so houses in Randwick area, other members of the Action group will be delivering across the rest of the area. Anyway the Action Group's newsletter is an update on the situation and what we've been up to recently. From the newsletter:

It is now almost two years since the land in the Ruscombe Valley was advertised for sale. Gladwish Land Management bought the Land and put it up for sale as 184 individual plots. The Ruscombe Valley Action Group was formed, with the objective of maintaining the fields as agricultural land. This newsletter gives a brief overview of the work the group have carried out in the last twelve months.

Plot Owners: Who are they?

David Drew supplied the group with a list of plot owners. Seventy-one plots had been sold to 59 individuals. The Action Group has written to all the plot owners explaining that the land is for agricultural use and is in an AONB. The letter also asked the plot owners:“What is planned for your land after the two-year agreement from Gladwish to manage the land following the initial sale? This occurs for many plot owners in the early part of 2006”.

Only three replies have been received and not one answered the question. However, it has now been confirmed that the fields will be cut this year, and although this will help to maintain them, the land has not been grazed for over two years there are definite signs of deterioration.

Contact With Other Groups

In the past year the group has made contact with all the Councils, Countryside groups and associations, and MP’s with similar problems in their constituencies, who they felt might support the Action Group. As a result of this exercise the group notes that it has initiated most of the actions that can be taken, but the Action Group feel that it needs to remain vigilant and monitor any changes, so that they are in a position to act should the situation alter. If you have any ideas for other actions or you see any unusual activity in the fields, please let one of the group know immediately.

Next Event

At first there was a great deal of publicity about the land in the local media, but there has been nothing recently, and it could give the impression that the problem has disappeared. To correct this the group has decided to:

Walk the Footpaths on Sunday July 23rd 11.30am and to follow it with a picnic on the playing fields. Your support would be greatly appreciated and we urge as many of you to come along with families and friends to join in the walk. The more the merrier and this will demonstrate that the footpaths through the land are used. For maximum impact the starting points and time will need to be co-ordinated, so please contact one of the group members for further information. The local press have agreed to be there.

Property Scam Website: www.propertyscam.org.uk

This website gives a great deal of information about property scams in other areas of the country and makes interesting reading. The group have contacted them and they have agreed to include information about the Ruscombe Valley. Watch this space.

Meetings

The group will continue to meet every three months, on the first Monday of the month at 8.30pm in Whiteshill Village Hall. The next meeting will be 4th September 2006. All are welcome.