Conservation group fights for its reinstatement

A Thame advisory group, originally formed to scrutinise planning applications affecting the town’s historic Conservation Area, is fighting to have its support reinstated after it was dismissed as ‘a self-appointed interest group’ by Thame Town Council.

Despite being given, in 1984, a remit to report back its independent views to the town council’s Planning committee, that same committee took the view last May  that the group, the Thame Conservation Area Advisory Committee (CAAC) did not have a formal role, and revoked the group’s free use of meeting space at the town hall.

Since then, the CAAC has continued to meet in the town hall lobby before planning meetings to scrutinise plans, but claims that since May, its views have not been shared at planning meetings or included in the minutes.

Speaking at a meeting of Thame Town Council’s Planning and Environment Committee on Tuesday (05/01), Colin Sear, the Thame CAAC’s Chairman, accused the town council of ‘a fait accompli’ by announcing its withdrawal of support without any discussion with his group, and of doing so based on ‘false information’.

Mr Sears claimed that the town council’s assertion in an email to a member of his committee, stating that ‘Thame CAAC was not aligned or acting on behalf of the Planning and Environment Committee in any formalised way’ and that it is ‘a self-appointed interest group’ was ‘clearly not correct’. He went on to say that the email advised the CAAC that the town council now considers planning applications in light of the Neighbourhood Plan. But, went on Mr Sear, it had not been explained where the relevant sections of the Neighbourhood Plan were that relate to the Conservation Area of Thame, and which set out where the work independently carried out by the CAAC is no longer appropriate.

He asked the council to reconsider its decision, stating that his committee’s sole interest, as an independent committee, was: “…to represent the interests of the residents of Thame in helping to maintain the hightest standards for the Conservation Area.”

The Chair of the Planning and Environment Committee, Cllr Helena Fickling, said that her committee had no powers to reinstate free use of the committee room at the town hall to the Conservation Committee, but that it could make a recommendation that would need to go to full council.

On the point of the status of the Thame CAAC, she said that there seemed to be some confusion at South Oxfordshire District Council over whether the CAAC’s views were those of the town council or of an independent group.

Cllr David Dodds said: “The Conservation Area Advisory Committee doesn’t have a constitution and is therefore self-perpetuating. Who makes up the membership and who nominates membership needs to be clarified.

“The group has a very valuable role and it is great that it is independent. I’m sure its members have taken on board what has been said here and I would back a decision by full council to grant it free use of meeting space.”

The matter will now go forward to full council in February. (RELATED LINK: http://www.thame.net/archives/15317