Angry residents in Dickens Heath and Tidbury Green are campaigning to save nine 150 year old oak trees from destruction. Redrow Homes want to build a four story apartment block on the site. 234 people have signed a petition opposing the plan. The matter will go before councillors at a Planning Committee meeting to be held on Monday evening. Officials from the council are expected to recommend approval for the proposal.
View the original description of the New Dickens Heath Village

This was the scene on Wednesday 14th February as the oaks were felled.

Sunday 8th October 2000
Sad inditement of modern society, the local people who actually live by these trees have had to make way as the people in charge of development have chosen to knock them down and replace it with a feature building, shame about common sense eh?
Neil Bromley

Monday 28th February
I would like to take this opportunity to offer my complete support with regards to keeping the trees as the 'feature' rather than another building.
At present I am attempting to gather some support for the cause from Local Agenda 21 members and hope that common sense will prevail.
I would also like to bring to your attention the fact that there seems to be more than necessary removal of hedgerows in the area too.
This information is known to the Environmental/Landscape Departments of Solihull Council but feel that their hands are tied without more local support.
Neil A. Bromley

Wednesday 23rd February
At the Council meeting on Monday 21st February the Councillors elected to build the four storey block of flats and to remove the nine ancient Oaks at the junction of Rumbush Lane and Dickens Heath Road.
They believed that they had discussed the matter enough, and did not want to delay the developers (Redrow Homes) any more.
There were seven Councillors who voted for this, three Labour, and four Conservative.
NONE of these Councillors live in the area.
They maintained that they could not change the original plans, although only last year they elected to move the public house from one end of the village to the other because the brewery wanted to.(So much for seven years of consultation).
The Residents Association intend contacting the Ombudsman, as they believe that the way that this has been pushed through is not legal, for instance:-

• No residents consultation.
• The footprint of the building is four times that on the plans.
• The adjoining land is low density housing, this landmark building should be low or medium density, not high.
• The tress that are to be removed have already been recommended as worthy of retention by the Council.
• The flats have no parking for visitors, hence should not be approved.
• The large scale of the building is not in keeping with the street scene.
• Dickens Heath Road will be in permanent shade if this building is constructed.
• Trees on the other side of the road, which do have TPO's on them will be in shade, and may die because of this building.
• The trees form an entrance canopy to the village, to remove them removes the status of village.
• The flats have not been designed to be in keeping with a village, they have no architectural merit.

The plans submitted by the developer do not show which trees are to be removed, as required by planning procedures.
If there is a solicitor in the area who could help it would be greatly appreciated, also if anyone knows the address of the Ombudsman.
Many Thanks.
Roy Holloway
E-mail address: Roy.Holloway@1c24.net

Sunday, February 20th
Part of the original plans for the Dickens Heath Village is to construct a landmark building on the corner of Rumbush Lane and Dickens Heath Road.
Without informing the residents, a design for this building was proposed by Redrow and approved by councillors by 5 votes to 4.
The design proposed has a "footprint" 4 times larger than the original scheme and entails the complete removal of 9 ancient Oaks and all the adjoining hedgerows.
These Oaks at present form a unique canopy entrance to the village down both roads, this would obviously be destroyed, but to compound this act of vandalism, the building proposed is a four storey block of flats.
These flats must be the most inappropriate building for a village, and must be considered an eyesore rather than a landmark. They will put one side of Dickens Heath Road in permanent shade, Summer and Winter.
To date there has been 100% support amongst local residents, both "old" and "new", for the campaign to reduce the scale of the building and to move the structure back to enable the trees to remain.
The Councillors that voted to remove the trees were not local. Both Peter Lea and Ken Meeson are campaigning on our behalf, and it is hoped that common sense will prevail amongst the other members, they have a chance to prove that they are working on behalf of the people that voted for them.

I should be pleased to receive any comments, and if you believe that these Oaks should be saved for future generations to enjoy, please write to Peter Lea, Ken Meeson or Mr. Gareth Jones at Solihull Planning Department, all letters can be sent to the Council House at PO Box 19.

Roy Holloway
E-mail address: Roy.Holloway@ic24.net