Schoolgirl, 10, joins fight to save Walsall Green Belt from housing
A 10-year-old Walsall schoolgirl fears the potential loss of green belt land to housing would have a devastating impact on her community.
Hydesville Tower School pupil Laila Uddin and her family are among hundreds who have joined the ‘Save Our Green Belt Alongside Walsall Arboretum’ group, aimed at stopping the redevelopment of Calderfields West.
Calderfields has been included as one of a number of green belt Walsall sites in the Black Country Plan which could result in almost 600 homes being built on the land next to the town’s premier park.
Its inclusion in the plan has sparked strong objections from the community, including a petition which has been signed by around 3,000 people so far.
Walsall Council said it was currently reviewing responses received in the initial consultation exercise on the plan. Further consultation will take place later in the year.
Laila, who is a member of her school’s eco-committee, addressed a packed public meeting last week, attended by more than 200 people at St Michael the Archangel church in Rushall, where the plans were discussed.
She said: “I joined the eco-committee and we talk all about how we could save the Green Belt surrounding us.
“We also discuss how the carbon dioxide is really bad for the environment.
"It’s [the park] important for us, the animals and wildlife.
“We use the area. We go for walks and go to the nature reserve that is there.
“It’s wrong to take that Green Belt land away to build houses because even though we have housing problems, it isn’t right to take our last bit of the Green Belt away.
“As a 10-year-old, that space is for generations to come. We could take our own little kids there when we grow up.”
Laila's father, Rohim Uddin, said: “The school is next to the Arboretum and they have a busy road next to it. So by keeping the green scene around the school, you actually contribute to a healthier area.
“What trees and plants do is take out the toxins from the air, pollutants from the air, it’s a noise barrier as well.
“We are in Walsall, a heavily industrialised area from the last 100 years. We have copious amount of brownfield sites and yet they want to expand into the Green Belt.
“I think, as a parent, one of the messages I’d want to give the council is look at the area in a general sense where you are.
“You are in one of the most deprived areas in the country, you’ve heavily industrialised it, you’ve obliterated Green Belt around it and now you want to take more.
“Clearly, you need to look at what we have already, such as under-utilised shopping centres and factories.
“Industry has left the area now and left acres and acres of land behind which is unused. The council needs to look at what it can do.”
A Walsall Council spokesperson said: “We are currently reviewing the representation received at regulation 18 consultation last autumn. In August to September 2022 we expect to consult on the draft publication regulation 19 version of the plan.
“The council will approve the draft publication regulation 19 version of the plan in the summer, the dates for which are likely to be confirmed after the May elections. The outcomes from the consultation, along with further evidence gathering, will inform the next version of the Black Country Plan – called the Publication Plan.
“The Publication Plan will be published late summer/autumn 2022 when all four Black Country councils will be asked to approve for consultation.”
Under the draft Black Country Plan, it is proposed Walsall provides enough land to build an 13,344 new houses up to 2039, with 5,418 of those on sites currently classed as Green Belt.
