'Save the Wick' legal war chest sees over £9k raised

The Save the Wick launched the appeal on November 13, with an initial target of £10,000 to cover the cost of specialist solicitors and barristers.

The campaign raised more than £9,000 in just six days.

National organisations Buglife, Butterfly Conservation and the RSPB, as well as Colchester Natural History Society, CPRE Essex, Essex Field Club, Essex Wildlife Trust, and the Friends of Middlewick are all involved with the fundraiser.

The legal challenge comes following the revelation that two separate ecological reports were prepared, with the 2017 one reporting higher biodiversity only being made as a reference for councillors to see ahead of a key Local Plan vote  in 2022, which saw the Wick earmarked for housing.

Biodiverstiy - Save the Wick campaigners holding photographs and diagrams of the Wick's biodiversity (Image: Newsquest) Jamie Robins is a programmes manager at national conservation charity Buglife, which has been involved with the campaign to save the Wick since the start of the year.

He said: “It’s all driven by the great local campaigners - it is built off their backs.

“We were persuaded by all the evidence the campaign gave, which has made us fully behind the campaign.

"Over £9,000 has been raised in five days, which is a huge boon to the campaign and how it can fight back through legal avenues."

He added: “We know there has been huge opposition in Colchester with protests, art events, guided walks, and petitions which have not broken through with Colchester Council, so we have had no choice but to look at the legality of the move.

“We are doing everything we can, but we need people with expert advice and specialisms, to tell us where our weaknesses are - and to build a war chest.”
Ranges - The Middlewick Ranges has been undisturbed for at least two hundred years (Image: Newsquest) The MOD says as there is no longer a defence requirement for the site since 2016, it is up to the local authority and its new owner to determine the development of the site.

A spokesman said: “We commissioned a comprehensive range of surveys over a three-year period to ensure that environmental impacts were understood and mitigated.”

A Colchester Council spokesman said: “We are undertaking a comprehensive review of the Local Plan, as required by national planning regulations.

"As part of this review, we are carefully considering the ongoing ecological survey at Middlewick Ranges, ensuring that the latest evidence is incorporated into our decision-making process.”

To donate to the appeal, visit crowdjustice.com/case/help-us-defend-the-middlewick-ranges.