Hereward Meadow

Hereward Meadow in October 2004

Work on a new housing development to be known as Hereward Meadow began early in 2002. The site covering almost six acres off Exeter Street, a short distance form the town centre, was an area of land that had been lying idle for some years and previously occupied by Woodland Nurseries.

South Kesteven District Council gave planning permission for the land to be used as new homes in December 2001. The plans by the development company David Wilson Homes provided for 139 new properties, the first of which would be ready for occupation by the autumn of 2002. They would include a mix of three-bedroom, three-storey terraced houses with separate garages and two-storey detached houses with single or double garages. There would also be social housing of 30 homes, half available to rent and half for shared ownership.

Preparatory work included clearing the derelict site of a large complex of glasshouses that were owned by the nursery firm of E N Moody Ltd, together with a complex of dilapidated wooden outbuildings, crumbling concrete roadways and a water tower.

The Woodland Nurseries site pictured in the summer of 2001 prior to development

There was a great deal of opposition to the scheme, first from Bourne Town Council who feared the complex of new homes would add to the traffic congestion in Exeter Street that had already been caused by the opening of Sainsburys supermarket in 1999. Councillor Shirley Cliffe told the council: "The amount of traffic will be in excess of 139 cars even if there is only one car per household and it could be as high as 300. The roads here are already very busy at peak times and the additional traffic is bound to cause problems."

The town council lodged objections to the scheme on the following grounds:

• The amount of traffic that would be generated;

• The high density of the development which was in excess of 30 homes per hectare;

• The need for low cost/first time buyers' properties;

• Concerns whether the existing services, including sewerage, could cope with the development.

There was also a strong conservation lobby against the development led by Clare Barnard, a student from the Robert Manning Technology College, who wanted the land preserved as a nature reserve. While lying idle, it had become home to a wide variety of wildlife including foxes, hedgehogs, voles, mice, shrews, badgers, squirrels, frogs, toads, newts and many species of birds including sparrowhawks, tawny and barn owls, thrushes and wrens. Her protest against the land being used for housing won widespread support on the grounds that these animals and birds would be driven out but was brushed aside by the district council.

The developers however did promise to provide two areas of public open space, one equipped as a children's play area and the other on the edge of the development. They also agreed to make a one-off contribution to improving one of the schools in the Bourne area.

See also Water cress and flowers

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