Wellingborough tree protesters urge residents to join in campaign before full council meeting

Wellingborough tree protesters will be out in force at Thursday’s full meeting of North Northamptonshire Council (NNC) to voice their objections to tree felling in their town.

After demonstrating outside the Corby Cube, campaigners will use the public statements and questions slot to highlight concerns about the plans to chop down lime trees in London Road.

The Wellingborough Walks Action Group has been campaigning to save the trees from destruction and group co-leader Marion Turner-Hawes will be speaking at the meeting.

She said: “We will be outside the Cube before the meeting and I call upon North Northants residents who care about the protection of trees, the environment and our heritage to come and join us to express their concern and upset.

"While this is happening in Wellingborough now, this could happen in any village, any town, at any time.”

A proposal by opposition councillors Cllr Valerie Anslow (Lab, Croyland and Swanspool) and seconded by Cllr Anne Lee (Lab, Windmill) has also been put forward to be voted on by councillors.

The motion put forward is an attempt to make sure trees considered by communities so valuable they are protected by Tree Protection Orders (TPO) do indeed protect trees.

Councillors will vote on the motion: “Ensure that reports to planning committee on applications, where the granting of planning permission would involve the removal of trees protected by TPO(s), are supported by the advice of a suitably qualified officer.

"Furthermore, such reports to contain specific information, to support decision makers, to assess the weight considered ‘appropriate’ by the officer to be attached to this material consideration, to ensure that any resident or organisation relying on the system is treated equally and fairly, and that all local historic and natural heritage sites within North Northamptonshire communities are appropriately protected, while continuing the drive to provide homes and jobs for the community.”

A crowdfunder for the group has raised £10,627 to fund possible legal action. Feedback from a public exhibition will be reviewed during the voluntary ‘pause’ in felling.

In the meantime The Wellingborough Walks Action Group has sent a letter to NNC and to Stanton Cross developers Vistry, calling for them to listen to public opinion.

Ms Turner-Hawes said: “We welcome the news that Vistry are keen to rethink and to try to work with NNC to come up with a new plan in relation to the trees. We would ask they meet with us to find a way to ensure all the protected trees are safeguarded.”

To enable any more trees to be felled, contractors will have to apply for a temporary road closure from NNC and then carry out an ecological survey to assess nesting birds or roosting bats.

A spokesman for Stanton Cross said: “We will be taking time to review the information from members of the public (including the feedback forms) following the exhibition last week, and will re-engage with the local council over the next steps. We are committed to working towards a solution that will minimise the extent of the loss of existing trees and vegetation.”

Ms Turner-Hawes added: “These protests are not going away. We will keep going.”