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LATEST NEWS :-

Hope for the Future: A Fairer World for Farmers

Want to be a Wildlife Champion?

Historic fields south of Montague and Manor Roads

VE Day 80: World War II & Saltford

Next BaNES Local Plan housing target and timetable changes

WECA Mayor candidates respond on protecting food security & nature (last updated 5th May with election result)

2025 Big Garden Birdwatch results

Mow your lawn less and 'Save A Patch For Nature'

Farms vanishing around towns and cities

Will our new WECA Mayor protect food security & nature?

SPC updates its Saltford station policy

Annual Saltford Dawn Chorus Walk, 27th April

More news in our news archive >>

Hope for the Future: A Fairer World for Farmers

June 2025

On May 14, one of our members attended Hope for the Future: A Fairer World for Farmers, hosted by the University of Bath Fairtrade Community. The event spotlighted the impact of Fairtrade and the urgent challenges faced by farmers around the world.

Rosibel Ruiz, a Fairtrade coffee farmer from Nicaragua, shared her inspiring story. With Fairtrade support, she has been able to cope with climate challenges - receiving mosquito nets, polytunnels to dry beans in heavy rain, and guidance on companion planting to improve soil health. Diversifying with pineapples has helped boost her income, while new seedlings, food parcels, protective equipment, and access to credit have helped her recover from plant disease and economic pressures.

Elena Fernandez Lee from The Fairtrade Foundation spoke about Fairtrade tea and how the system ensures decent working conditions, trade union access, and no forced labour. However, she warned that climate change is threatening tea production - especially in Kenya, which supplies nearly half the UK's tea. By 2050, worsening conditions could cut yields by 25%. Adding to the pressure, most tea is sold at auction to a handful of large buyers who can drive prices down.

Gary Ayley from Café direct discussed how the company was founded to give coffee farmers a fairer deal after a global price crash. Cafédirect buys directly from growers, helping them keep a bigger share of profits. Still, 80% of coffee farmers today don't earn a living income.

Thanks for supporting Fairtrade! If you'd like to get involved, drop our Fairtrade Group an email - our contact details are on the top right-hand side of our Fairtrade page >>.

Together, we can help create a fairer future for farmers.

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Want to be a Wildlife Champion?

June 2025

The Avon Wildlife Trust has launched its Wildlife Champions Programme for 2025-2028. This is a calling to all nature lovers. If you would you like to do something positive for nature with your community and would like support to help make your vision a reality, this could be for you.

The Wildlife Champions Programme is a free training programme and peer support network that is here to help you bring more nature into your neighbourhood.

From planting for pollinators, bringing people together to share their memories of nature, creating a community garden, or organising walks and talks, their year-long monthly training programme can help you bring your ideas to life. Training sessions include: 'An Intro to Basic Ecology', 'Community Engagement & Organising', 'An Intro to Wildlife Monitoring', along with seasonal events such as dawn chorus walks and Solstice celebration.

If you would you like to find out more there is a Wildlife Champions Taster Day on Saturday 28th June (10am - 12pm). See the dedicated AWT webpage for further information from this link: AWT - Wildlife Champions >>.

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Historic fields south of Montague and Manor Roads

May 2025

The historic fields south of Montague Road and Manor Road exhibit characteristics which contribute to the distinctiveness of the village of Saltford. Saltford Parish Council has produced a paper on the importance of this area, which supports SPC's request for additional landscape protection for the Green Belt at 'Saltford South of the A4'.

You can find SPC's 'Locally Distinctive Historic Fields, South of Montague Rd/Manor Rd, Saltford South' paper and its ANNEX (a photographic record with LIDAR images) on SPC's website page on "Protecting Saltford's Green Belt" from this link >>

For future reference, copies of these important and historical record papers can also be found in SEG's Document Library that is part of our 'History of Saltford' project.

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VE Day 80: World War II & Saltford

May 2025

To help Saltford mark the VE Day 80th Anniversary, SEG has produced via its "History of Saltford" project a pictorial presentation on 'World War II & Saltford' to run continuously in a loop at the Saltford Community Association's "Afternoon Tea with Entertainment" event at Saltford Hall from 2.30pm on Saturday 10th May.

A copy of the presentation was also provided to Saltford School who showed it to their pupils during school assembly on VE Day, 8th May. The pupils respectfully observed a two-minute silence during the presentation for those Saltford residents that gave their lives during the war (they are listed within the presentation and in our History of Saltford project's Online Museum).

• You can download a pdf version of SEG's 'World War II & Saltford' presentation that is held in our History of Saltford Document Library from this link >>

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Next BaNES Local Plan housing target and timetable changes

May 2025

SEG is aware from information made available by Ward Cllr Duncan Hounsell at the SPC meeting on 7th May, that the mandatory government housing target for BaNES has increased further to 1,489 dwellings per annum (up from 1,466 p.a.). This increase is a consequence of a change in the "affordability factor" locally and the "standard method" figures that will apply from 2024.

The next BaNES Local Plan is likely to run from 2025 to 2043 (previously 2022 to 2042). There will be a small change in the new Local Plan development timetable so the new consultation on options for development (to meet the higher housing targets) is likely to be in the autumn, rather than the summer, 2025.

The Options document will be in the agenda papers for the BaNES Cabinet meeting taking place on 11th September with public consultation on the Options document taking place from mid-September until the end of October. The draft Local Plan will go to full BaNES Council in April/May 2026.

On a related matter, SPC discussed the response it had received from Baroness Taylor of Stevenage, Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Housing and Local Government, to its letter "New housing without compromising food security and nature" sent by SPC on 10th February 2025 to Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner MP (via the office of our MP, Dan Norris).

SPC resolved on 6th May to publish the official response on SPC's website and accompany the response with the following statement:-

   "Saltford Parish Council acknowledges and is grateful for the response from the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government. However, it remains deeply concerned that there has been no acceptance of the need to take a long-term stewardship approach to land use planning to simultaneously help the recovery of nature and to improve the resilience of the nation's indigenous food supply by providing better safeguards for the Green Belt and farmland.

   The Parish Council will be looking to Bath and North East Somerset and the newly elected West of England Mayor to set a national example by ensuring that no Green Belt or farmland in the area they control or influence is lost to development in the planning process and to therefore use other, more sustainable, means to meet genuine housing need and in the right places."

SPC also resolved to publish supplementary landscape evidence it has agreed to submit to BaNES Planners for its landscape designation request for Saltford south of the Bath Road (its publication and submission was delayed by the WECA Mayor pre-election period that prevents Parish Councils taking an active public role on policy issues that may be relevant to the political campaigns of candidates).

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WECA Mayor candidates respond on protecting food security & nature

March-May 2025 (last updated 5th May with election result)

We are posting here the answers (up to 60 words was the request by SEG) to our question to the candidates standing in the election on 1st May for WECA Mayor - see previous news story for further information. The question SEG asked was:-

   "In view of the Saltford Parish Council letter "New housing without compromising food security and nature" and if elected as WECA Mayor, how will you in the decisions you make and the policies you implement and support protect the West of England's Green Belt and farmland from development including making the case to Government Ministers that taking a longer-term stewardship approach to land use planning must be a priority so that negative consequences for food security and nature are not a result of where we build new homes in the West of England?"

In order of receipt, the responses received were as follows:-

Ian Scott (Independent candidate):
I am not going to make any commitments but my voting record on the Green Belt includes voting against the South Gloucestershire Local Plan in 2011 because of the loss of Green Belt in Patchway and against the South Gloucestershire Local Plan in February 2025 - a new Frenchay Community Hospital is needed before we can agree extra housing east of the Ring Road on Green Fields or Green Belt (summarised by SEG as reply exceeded 60 words).

Steve Smith (Conservative candidate):
Protection of the Green Belt is one of my top priorities. I will focus on "brownfield first" to ease the pressure on the Green Belt. Prioritising, and where necessary funding for, regeneration sites for new homes. Additionally, using the Mayoral role to support Green Belt campaigners at a national, regional and local level - resisting the current intense attack upon it.

Helen Godwin (Labour candidate):
I would balance new housing developments with protecting our Green Belt, farmland, and natural environments... requiring all new developments to deliver at least 10% biodiversity net gain across our region. I would protect nature by prioritising brownfield development first. I would create a comprehensive brownfield register for the West of England and secure funding from Labour's £8.3 billion affordable homes program to remediate these sites. I would also establish stronger protection for high-grade agricultural land.(summarised by SEG as reply exceeded 60 words).

Oli Henman (Lib Dem candidate):
I am strongly committed to long-term environmental stewardship of our farmland and rural areas. I would prioritise taking forward the Nature Recovery Strategy across the West of England region and would work with local environmental organisations. I am clear that new development should be focused on brownfield sites as a priority so that people can reach good transport connections.

Answers were not received from the other two West of England mayoral candidates, Mary Page (Green Party) and Arron Banks (Reform).

Following voting on polling day (1st May) with only a 30% turnout, Helen Godwin (Labour) was elected Mayor of the West of England Combined Authority.

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2025 Big Garden Birdwatch results

April 2025

The Wren was not in the UK's top 10 garden birds observed but is regularly seen or heard in and around Saltford.

The results for the 2025 Big Garden Birdwatch held on the weekend of 24 - 26 January are now published by the RSPB. The top ten most commonly observed birds across the UK are listed below.

All 10 had no change on last year's position with the exception of the Woodpigeon (+1 at 3rd) swapping places with the Starling (-1 at 4th). The list is:-

   1. House Sparrow
   2. Blue Tit
   3. Woodpigeon
   4. Starling
   5. Blackbird
   6. Robin
   7. Great Tit
   8. Goldfinch
   9. Magpie
   10. Long-tailed tit

Top spot goes to the House Sparrow for the 22nd year running despite a drastic decline in the UK over the past 50 years, so much is this decline that they are on the UK Red List for birds.

Over a half a million nature lovers took part this year counting 9 million birds(!). More information on the results of the 2025 Birdwatch can be found on the RSPB website. You can also find more information on social media using the hashtag #BigGardenBirdWatch.

One way to help garden birds is by encouraging insects. Why not let a patch of your garden grow wild this spring and summer?

A full list of the 103 birds that are presently of regular occurrence in Saltford with ID links to the RSPB website for each species can be found on our Wildlife page >>

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Mow your lawn less and 'Save A Patch For Nature'

April 2025

According to Butterfly Conservation, new data from the UK Butterfly Monitoring Scheme (UKBMS) shows that 2024 was one of the worst years on record for butterflies in the UK and, for the first time, more than half of butterfly species in the UK are now in long-term decline. Butterflies are sounding the alarm for nature and we need to take action now.

Research published in 2024 by Butterfly Conservation showed that letting parts of your garden grow wild with long grass can increase butterfly numbers by up to 93% and attract a wider range of species. That's because the butterflies and moths we love, like the Red Admiral, Peacock and Humming-bird Hawk-moth, need long grass all through the year to complete their life cycles.

Save A Patch For Nature: There are significant wildlife benefits from mowing your lawn less often. Letting parts of your lawn grow long, saves you time and helps give nature a home. The grasses will set seed, wildflowers will be able to bloom, and the longer stems will create a sheltered microclimate - a mini jungle through which beetles and other small creatures can wander.

Check out our "Gardening" page from the link below where we have guidance on different approaches you can take to letting your lawn, or a section of lawn, grow naturally. This might be having an area that either mimics a

• summer meadow - by far the best option to produce the most spectacular results to support our local wildlife;

• a spring meadow - the next best option, or

• a temporary meadow - the "No Mow May" approach that is the least best option, but better than doing nothing.

Link to our Gardening page and the: mow-less section.

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Farms vanishing around towns and cities

March 2025

A recent report from CPRE (the Countyside Charity) on farming on the urban fringe shows that more than 1,700 farms have disappeared from the edges of towns and cities since 2010. CPRE is calling on the government to recognise the vital role of the countryside around our towns and cities and make good on its commitment to a land use framework and a brownfield-first housebuilding policy.

The report reveals that productive agricultural land surrounding urban areas - land that could feed local communities and provide environmental benefits - is rapidly being lost from farming.

The loss equates to 56,000 hectares of farmland, an area similar in size to the city of Leeds, and represents a critical loss for both food security and environmental sustainability.

While the areas studied in the report represent just 11.3% of UK agricultural land, they produce an outsize proportion of foods including wheat (20.6%), oats (20.6%), barley (20%), potatoes (14.3%) and milk (13.3%).

Graeme Willis, agricultural lead at CPRE, said:

   'Farms around our towns and cities produce vital quantities of food but are disappearing at an alarming rate. Every hectare of farmland lost is more than just a statistical decline, it's an erosion of our countryside and our fundamental national resilience.

   'Farmers are being asked to produce sustainable food, protect biodiversity, improve soil health and combat climate change - all while facing unprecedented economic challenges and pressures from development. Without proper support systems in place, we risk losing not just farms close to towns and cities but doing serious damage to the UK agricultural sector overall.

   'The government should urgently join up its policies on land use, food security and agricultural support in a way that recognises the vital role of the countryside around our towns and cities. This means strengthening planning protections for agricultural land and providing the necessary support to farmers to both put food on people's plates and better manage the environment for future generations.'

The CPRE report can be found online from this link to the CPRE website >>

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Will our new WECA Mayor protect food security & nature?

March 2025

With elections for a new West of England Combined Authority (WECA) Mayor to be held on 1st May, SEG has written on 10th March to all 5 candidates standing for election with a copy of Saltford Parish Council's evidence-based letter "New housing without compromising food security and nature" (external link to DPM letter on SPC website) and asked them the following question:-

   "In view of the Saltford Parish Council letter "New housing without compromising food security and nature" and if elected as WECA Mayor, how will you in the decisions you make and the policies you implement and support protect the West of England's Green Belt and farmland from development including making the case to Government Ministers that taking a longer-term stewardship approach to land use planning must be a priority so that negative consequences for food security and nature are not a result of where we build new homes in the West of England?"

In its letter to the candidates, SEG said that the group's main theme currently was protection of the Green Belt and farmland. Other themes or main areas of concern are reducing peak time traffic congestion through Saltford, therefore we are strongly opposed to the poorly conceived and recently abandoned proposals to put bus lanes on the Keynsham bypass (A4); and SEG remains in favour of the re-opening of Saltford railway station to make up for the more than doubling in size of Saltford, a rural village, since the 1950s, but the reopened station must not to be a gateway for new housing developments on Saltford's Green Belt.

We shall publish on our website the replies to our question when they have been received.

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SPC updates its Saltford station policy

March 2025

Image © SEG

At the March monthly meeting of Saltford Parish Council on 4th March, in response to the Government's statement on railway stations and new housing developments, SPC resolved its updated policy position on Saltford station.

This was as a direct result of the economic growth statement made on 29th January 2025 by the Chancellor of the Exchequer Rachel Reeves, which included the following policy statement on planning decisions on land around stations:- "New transport infrastructure can also act as a catalyst for new housing. We have already seen the benefits that unlocking untapped land around stations can deliver... new housing and wider commercial opportunities. We will introduce a new approach to planning decisions on land around stations, changing the default answer to yes."

SPC's policy statement was as follows:-

   "Saltford Parish Council remains in favour of reopening Saltford railway station on the existing site, but only on the basis that a new Saltford station would be accompanied with incontestable planning safeguards to ensure that any reopened station in the village would not lead to development on any of Saltford's Green Belt (including that recognised by SPC as an Area of Great Landscape Value). The Parish Council is resolute that Saltford - as a rural village - has already undergone significant housing growth since the 1950s, more than doubling in size, and that a new Saltford Railway Station should be established to serve and support the existing community."

Saltford Environment Group considers this as a pragmatic way forward; the village would greatly benefit from a reopened Saltford station to help the village reduce its carbon footprint and provide an alternative travel option to road travel, particularly for commuting to work places in Bristol and Bath as well as providing more flexible travel options for those without a car. It would help reduce the significant growth in peak time traffic congestion through Saltford since the short-sighted decision was made over 50 years ago to close Saltford station when encouraging car use over public transport was seemingly the transport policy of central Government.

However, re-opening the station to overcome the transport problems associated with building new houses in the BaNES and Bristol area without taking more account of where houses actually need to be built, should not open the door to yet further losses of the Green Belt and farmland that underpin our food security and nature, as SPC has proven in its 10th February 2025 evidence-based letter to the Deputy Prime Minister "New housing without compromising food security and nature" - external link to DPM letter on SPC website >>.

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Annual Saltford Dawn Chorus Walk, 27th April

March 2025

The annual Dawn Chorus Walk in Saltford will be held again this year.

The Keynsham Branch of the Avon Wildlife Trust will be listening to, and watching, the birds get up after a night's roosting for this year's Dawn Chorus Walk on Sunday 27th April 4.30am - 8.00am, starting at Saltford Shallows car park.

A Saltford Yellowhammer - that seems to sing "A little bit of bread and no cheese".

This is a great way to learn how to identify from their songs the many birds that are found in Saltford. Songs of all common species will be pointed out and their identification features clarified. The walk will be along part of the railway path cycle track (and back). Wrap up warm as it can be very cold that early. Binoculars and a bird identification guide will be helpful for once it gets light. Above all you need good ears to be able to pick out the 30+ different species the annual walk normally finds! A flask of your favourite hot beverage is recommended.

This event is free but an optional donation to support Avon Wildlife Trust funds will be requested on the day.

For further information and to confirm your attendance, contact Dave Sage on mobile 07899--716068 the week before the event.

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Worried about your home heating and energy costs?
Check out our Energy page for energy saving tips, sources of advice, grants and more.
 

For previous news stories from SEG visit our

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Current areas of local volunteer assistance sought by SEG

Whilst our partner organisations such as Saltford Wombles (for tackling litter), Saltford4Nature (for making for Saltford's green public spaces more pollinator friendly) and the Fairtrade Group always welcome volunteer assistance, SEG sometimes has specific roles or posts that need filling. Here are the current vacancies:-

Updated July 2024

Executive Committee: Want to help steer SEG?

SEG is seeking new Executive Committee members to help steer and develop SEG's role in the community as we address the environmental concerns of our members at the local level. If you think you might like to get involved and join our Executive Committee (enthusiasm and a "can do" attitude is more important than expertise!), please contact our Chairman, Phil Harding, for an informal non-committal chat.

The Executive Committee only meets 4 times a year and its working method is more about sharing ideas and getting things done in a friendly and productive atmosphere than being bogged down with time-consuming administration.

Website skills wanted!

Our website is a popular resource for our members and others which means that in addition to keeping it relevant we want to make sure it continues to function as it should.

If you live in or near Saltford, care about your local environment and have current knowledge of website design and might be interested in using your IT skills for a bit of IT volunteering to help us behind the scenes please get in touch with our Chairman by email to philharding27@gmail.com for a no-obligation chat on possible volunteer help.

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Contact Us

All general, membership & urgent (e.g. Press) enquiries by email to our Chairman please from whom SEG's postal address, if required, can be obtained on authenticated* request *(to avoid junk mailing etc.).

HOW TO JOIN SEG: If you live, work or have a particular interest in Saltford & wish to join our email membership list please send an email to our Chairman. Please include your name, address & contact telephone number in your email application. NOTE: We provide information about membership including our simple code of conduct for members and personal data protection by SEG on our "About Us page".

CONTACTS:

Chairman: Phil Harding
philharding27@gmail.com (Tel: 07814--720763)

Website Editor is Phil Harding but see website editorial/contact info. below BEFORE contacting SEG about this website

Secretary: Vacant post

Treasurer: Andrew Stainer
andrew.stainer@outlook.com

SEG Green Belt Campaign: Contact our Chairman (contact details above)

Saltford Station Campaign: Chris Warren
cherokee1883@live.com

Saltford Fairtrade Group:
saltfordfairtrade@hotmail.co.uk

History of Saltford
Project Curators: Phil Harding & Andrew Stainer (contact details above).

Saltford Wombles is independent of SEG but contact details can be found on our Less Waste page.

Saltford4Nature community gardening group is sub-group of SEG; contact details can be found on our Gardening page.

Cookies and Privacy Policy Statement

SEG respects the privacy of visitors to our website. We do not use cookies to collect personal or other data about visitors to our website; the only data we collect via our ISP's hosting service, and without the use of cookies, is the number of visits to each of our web pages but not who the individual visitors are.

*EDITORIAL POLICY including SEO, web design and marketing for www.saltfordenvironmentgroup.org.uk

As a general rule our editorial content is sourced locally in Saltford and NE Somerset or from reputable non-commercial organisations based in the UK.

Will Search Engine Optimisation (SEO), website design, "content providers" and other similar companies please note that this website has all the SEO ranking, social media links, and smartphone compatibility that it requires to meet its specific objectives and enquiry emails on this topic including link requests will not receive a reply to save your time and ours.

SEG is not a commercial enterprise therefore companies that produce bespoke marketing materials or sponsored editorial content should also note that marketing emails or requests for placing links to other websites* will not receive a reply as it is our policy not to reply to marketing emails of this nature unless they are from a Saltford-based organisation seeking to assist SEG.

*SEG is not in a position to authenticate the accuracy and legitimacy of third party websites and/or third party editorial content.

Do you care about the village of Saltford, its environment, wildlife and future as a thriving, more sustainable community? Then join us and also follow us on facebook. See our 'About us' page for how to join (membership is free!).

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SUPPORT FROM BUSINESS:
We welcome support from local businesses to help cover our costs and keep membership free for our members. If your local business would like to support SEG (e.g. a logo + link on this page is very inexpensive), please contact our Chairman (see above for contact details).