A huge win for irreplaceable ancient woodland

Oldhouse Warren, an exceptional 550-acre ancient woodland and part of the historic Worth Forest, has had a stay of execution after Center Parcs abandoned its plans to develop a new village within this irreplaceable habitat. The proposals would have been disastrous for wildlife, seeing the loss of irreplaceable habitat to inappropriate development.

The Trust, alongside Sussex Wildlife Trust, CPRE Sussex, RSPB, Sussex Ornithological Society and local community group Protect Oldhouse Warren, have opposed the plans and called on Center Parcs to think again. With the announcement on 9 February, we can only commend Center Parcs for taking this important decision. We encourage Center Parcs to work with charities and their conservation experts going forward to ensure the right sites are selected for new villages and to avoid future environmental disaster.

Center Parcs taking this decision now, before it is too late, is evidence why proper site assessments are needed in planning. Given that ancient woods now cover less than 3% of the UK, there must not be any shortcuts to planning when dealing with these rare gems. Like many others, the Woodland Trust spoke out against Government plans last year to relax planning measures for investment zones. Planning rules and the thorough assessments they ensure are vital to protect our green spaces for people and for wildlife. While one look at existing datasets should be enough to indicate development shouldn't happen in precious spots such as Oldhouse Warren, this shows the importance of ecological experts undertaking site surveys to inform decisions about where development happens - the Government should take note in developing its proposals for new Environmental Outcomes Reports for development proposals.

We would like to thank everyone who has supported our cause and contacted either their local councillors, MP or even Center Parcs directly. Without the help of members and supporters we may not have achieved this massive win for ancient woodland. We will now look to the future to try and ensure the continued protection of Oldhouse Warren through sensitive management and ancient woodland restoration.

Notes to editors

For more details about this release contact Natalie Stephenson, senior PR officer at the Woodland Trust on 0343 7705795 or email nataliestephenson@woodlandtrust.org.uk

About the Woodland Trust

The Woodland Trust is the largest woodland conservation charity in the UK. It has over 500,000 supporters. It wants to see a UK rich in native woods and trees for people and wildlife.

The Trust has three key aims:

1. protect ancient woodland which is rare, unique and irreplaceable
2. restoration of damaged ancient woodland, bringing precious pieces of our natural history back to life
3. plant native trees and woods with the aim of creating resilient landscapes for people and wildlife.

Established in 1972, the Woodland Trust now has over 1,000 sites in its care covering approximately 29,000 hectares. Access to its woods is free so everyone can benefit from woods and trees.