Westleton Common News

Safety Audit 

The report of a safety audit of the Common carried out in May 2023 is available to read here.

The two signs warning about the beehives have been replaced.

Roy Jones 1935 to 2023

In 2005 Arlette Smith, then Chair of Westleton Parish Council asked Roy Jones, a fellow councillor, if he would lead the Common Advisory Group. Roy had always taken a keen interest in the Common, so he was happy to accede to Arlette’s request. Roy chaired the group from 2015 until 2020 and continued as member till his death in 2023.

The common was very important to Roy and he understood how valuable it was to Westleton and its people. He saw it as a resource for leisure, exercise and stimulation and appreciated its importance in maintaining local and national biodiversity. Westleton is and must remain an attractive place for visitors and Roy understood how the common makes Westleton a place worth visiting. During his time as our chairman Roy always made sure we kept all these factors at the heart of our discussions.

In our Annual Report for 2022 we wrote;

Roy provided the group with strong leadership and kept the rest of us focussed on the issues that mattered when we showed signs of getting side-tracked onto less important topics. He would always make sure that proper procedures were followed and that we abided by the various obligations under the funding agreements and, of course, our statutory duties. He had a clear vision of what was important to the success of the common project.

Roy will be missed by everyone who has an interest in the common.

Nick Shearme and Westleton Common Advisory Group

Westleton Common Advisory Group

To all people interested in Westleton Common;

Friends

In October 2023 we hope bring about the return of the wooded area in the central section of the south common (compartment 11) to a wet woodland glade. This will involve the felling of some of the trees. We expect that this will allow the recovery of insect life which should support birds, including sand martins that nest in the nearby cliff (which we expect to clear of gorse later in 2023 or early in 2024).

This work is proposed in the Management Plan for 2023 to 2033. See below:

11

These areas will be thinned when needed. Restore woodland glade and wet area in that part of compartment 11 to the left (on compartment plan) of the path.

When Westleton first took over the common it was clear that people wanted the little wood in the centre to stay. They wanted to keep the mosaic of habitats and not have everything revert to heathland.

We expect to mark the trees to be felled during June 2023.

We are contacting Suffolk Wildlife Trust and Natural England to confirm that they support this action (both have received copies of the Management Plan and have given their general support to it).

Westleton Common Advisory Group March 2023

Westleton Common - reporting wildlife observations.

We would like to encourage visitors to Westleton Common to report any wildlife observation to the Suffolk Biodiversity Information Service. You can do this through their website of by using an app which runs on iPad and iPhone. More information is available from the SuffolkBIS website; https://www.suffolkbis.org.uk/record

Thank you.

Westleton Common Advisory Group

Westleton Common Management Plan

2023 – 2033

The Management Plan for Westleton Common for the period 2023 to 2033 has now been written and accepted by Westleton Parish Council.

A copy of this plan is available in the Foyer of Westleton Village Hall and can also be read on the Westleton website at (click) Management-Plan-FINAL-VERSION-220621.pdf (onesuffolk.net).

If anyone has any questions or concerns, they can contact any member of the Advisory Group, names and contact details can also be found on the website (click) About Us » Westleton (onesuffolk.net).

We will then organise a meeting and guided walk on the common, probably in September 2022, to discuss the proposals.

Westleton Common Advisory Group July 2022

 

Emergency Access to Westleton Common

The Westleton Common Advisory Group has given this advice to Westleton Parish Council on how to improve emergency access to the common.

There is further discussion of this project recorded in the minutes of the Advisory Group meeting held on 15 November 2021.

 

Westleton Common Advisory Group

Installation of drop-down posts on the footpath leading to the Common

We intend to improve access to the Common for emergency vehicles.

The two wooden posts on the footpath leading from the storage container and parking area on Mill Street onto the Common will be modified so that, in an emergency, they can be dropped down more or less flat. These posts will be secured in their normal upright position using digital locks. The code to the locks will be issued to the emergency services only (Suffolk Fire and Rescue and East of England Ambulance Service). This code will not be available to the general public, although members of the Common Advisory Group will have them. The locks on the posts will be of a design that can be cut with bolt cutters if the first emergency vehicle on site does not have access to the codes.

The vegetation adjacent to the path will not be cut back and the path will not be widened. A pair of wooden posts to the right of the path a few metres beyond the posts will be removed. In the event of an emergency the drop-down posts can be opened, and the emergency vehicle can drive through the undergrowth onto the Common. It will be necessary to ensure that the vegetation does not become so dense as to inhibit the emergency access; this would be done as part of normal maintenance in line with the management plan.

The advantages of this approach are;

Existing width restriction is maintained.

No disturbance of habitat.

No interference with existing management plan.

Access by large vehicles would only be required in an emergency so non-emergency access is inhibited.

People can be assured that there is no intention to use this footpath by vehicles other than in an emergency. Access to the Common by other vehicles will continue to be via the track from the Reckford Road only. The gate to this track is secured by a padlock and chain, Common advisory group members have access to the key. Suffolk Fire and Rescue vehicles carry bolt cutters so, should it be necessary, they can access the Common through this gate.

There may be rare and unanticipated circumstances when access to the Common by vehicles is essential but the track from the Reckford Road is inaccessible. Under these unusual circumstances we would allow access via the footpath. We feel it would not be sensible, nor in the best interests of the management of the Common, to neglect essential management work, that should not or could not be delayed, because the Reckford Road track was not useable.

We expect this work to be completed during September and October 2023.

Westleton Common Advisory Group

September 2023

 

 

 

~