Hadleigh farmland campaigners vow not to back down

After marching on the Castle Point Council officers on Friday, campaigners have called on councillors and Salvation Army bosses to promise to scrap any plans for homes and ensure the land remains untouched for generations to come. 

Martin England, head of the Save Hadleigh Farmland Group, helped organise for more than 80 campaigners to present the 8,000 strong petition and has now vowed to “never stop” until the land is protected.  

Former Southend West and Leigh Conservative MP, Anna Firth was joined at Castle Point Council offices by Dame Rebecca Harris, Conservative MP for Castle Point (Image: George Pizani)
Speaking after the protest, he said: “This march is about the solidarity of the residents from Hadleigh and Leigh, all united together against the development of the Salvation Army Farmland. It can’t be ignored by our councillors, planning officers or the Salvation Army.

“There are so many reasons to not build on this site, greenbelt, farmland, extra traffic onto the already busy London Road, lack of road access, more pollution, a lack of schools and doctors, loss of wildlife, it’s an archaeological site. Urban sprawl will destroy the special character of Hadleigh. 

The Bessells braved the cold to make their voices heard (Image: George Pizani)

“This historic site, the birthplace of the Salvation Army’s Hadleigh Colony, in 1891, borders on the Heritage England site for Hadleigh Castle, connects to the 387 acre Hadleigh Country Park, overlooking the Thames Estuary, which also hosted the 2012 Olympic Mountain Bike races. Once this beautiful area is gone, it is gone forever.

The group began their march outside Hadleigh's Salvation Army Temple (Image: George Pizani) “The petition strongly objects to any housing development on this farmland and we want this site removed from any local plan discussion by our councillors immediately.

“We also want the Salvation Army to withdraw the site from any future development plans and commit to working with the community to resolve the issue. 

Simon Willis and Amanda Compton-Willis are residents of Leigh’s Tattersall Gardens (Image: George Pizani)
“We shall never stop the fight for our amazing farmland and green belt, and we have only just started.”

Anna Firth, former Conservative MP for Southend West and Leigh, has been heavily involved in the campaign.

She said: “Standing up for the green belt is absolutely fundamental and especially here where we have the last bit of green space separating Hadleigh from the city of Southend. Preserving the distinct identities of individual towns and villages is one of the core reasons for having a green belt.”