Spring Residential Lose their Appeal!

The JLHT is delighted to announce that Spring Residential's appeal was rejected by the Planning Inspector. Congratulations to all involved for your hard work and support in the helping the JLHT and the community achieve this important victory!

What next?

The JLHT is now working to put together a consortium with the intention of purchasing the Jericho Boatyard site for a community-led development. Your support will be as important as ever. Please stay in touch via the website, more information will be forthcoming.

About the Appeal

Spring Residential's appeal against Oxford Council's decision to reject the plan to build a four-storey block of flats on the boayard site took place in Oxford Town Hall from the 12th to the 21st of August.

The case against the appellants (Spring Residential) was fought vigorously by us the Jericho Living Heritage Trust (JLHT) in close partnership with the Jericho Community Association (JCA). Our barrister was Mr.Trevor Standen of the firm RadcliffesLeBrasseur, Westminster, and we had four first-rate expert witnesses, including Mr. Richard Anstis (canal paths, planning policy, etc), Dr. David Lloyd (flood-risk), Mr. Denis McCoy (urban design); and further, on the topic of the design’s appropriateness for Jericho, Mr George Ferguson, the former President of the Royal Institute of British Architects.

There were two other barristers engaged along with ours in what was altogether a gruelling battle against the appellants: Mr. Douglas Edwards representing the Oxford City Council fought the issue of affordable housing; and Mr. Mark Westmoreland-Smith representing the Jericho Community Boatyard Ltd. fought the issue of the developer providing a replacement boatyard elsewhere along the Oxford Canal.

A number of individuals gave their 3rd Party representations, including Philip Pullman's spirited entreaty to the Inspector, Ava Wood. Among others of our team Jenny Mann and Heathcote Williams did excellently. And Father Jonathan Beswick, priest in charge of St Barnabas Church, gave the JLHT and JCA’s stance his fullest support.

Throughout the Inquiry, the sheer strength of local feeling about the insensitivity and unsuitability of this proposal was made abundantly clear.

So, where are we now?

The Inspector will decide the issue within 6-8 weeks. At present we need to finish finding the funds to cover the costs of what was a vitally necessary legal defence of the community’s say in what happens to the boatyard. And if we win, and should Spring choose to sell, there awaits an even greater challenge for us - that of gathering the wherewithal to purchase the boatyard for the community. All the contingency work to enable future actions is now underway with our sub-committee teams of volunteers. Also, our registered charity status application is progressing.

As Heathcote Williams, one voice for Jericho's heritage, expressed in his 3rd Party Statement:

'Oxford is England's Venice, its Florence. Imagine the authorities in Venice - the Serene Republic - being presented with Castlemore Securities' Blocks A, B and C - or Spring Residential's Executive Barracks. They'd be laughed out of court for hatching something so inappropriate and might count themselves fortunate not to find horse's heads on their pillows. Castlemore have now spent some three years laying siege to Jericho with one plan or another. All of them dull if not plug ugly. But if they should have their way and if Oxford continues to be nibbled away at and is then finally turned into Brent Cross Shopping Centre its magic will never come round again.

In 1918 when the poet W.B. Yeats lived here he wrote: "I wonder anybody does anything at Oxford but dream and remember, the place is so beautiful. One almost expects the people to sing instead of speaking. It is all...like an opera." If Yeats could glimpse what Castlemore Securities have been plotting to plant on Jericho I dare say he wouldn't be surprised to discover that the Oxford songbirds of his imagination had now lost their voices and were falling into a despondent silence. Why? because Jericho wants its boatyard back.'