Gorse Covert Mounds –When ‘Big Society’ Turns Into Megalomania

We’ve all heard of Cameron’s ‘Big Society’, it was a key element of the last general election and is essentially a ‘Do-Gooders’ Charter. It encourages the community to get involved in public work, often in place of local authority services that have had to be cut. A noble scheme for certain, it also recognises the significant work done by many previously unappreciated local charities.

We’ve seen many good things to come out of the ‘Big Society’ like local libraries being handed over to local (often retired) volunteers to run rather than just having them closed down. All good stuff, but what happens when these volunteer groups turn into something they were never meant to be, when certain individuals want to make a name for themselves and spoil it for everyone else? Cue the tale of Gorse Covert Mounds.

So What Are ‘Gorse Covert Mounds’?

Gorse Covert is a pleasant housing estate where I’ve lived for over 15 years on the edge of Birchwood in Warrington. The following description of the ‘Mounds’ comes direct from the Woodland Trust’s leaflet on the area.  

Gorse Covert Mounds form a long wooded ridge with superb views to Manchester and the Pennine Hills from Pestfurlong Hill. The area looked very different 100 years ago when it was an expanse of flat bog, often covered with mist.

During the Second World War much of the moss was drained and a huge bomb factory was built on the land. It employed 30,000 workers, mainly women, who produced over a million mines and 500,000 high explosive shells! It was a dangerous place to work with frequent explosions. Many lost limbs and a few their lives. Detonator assembly was particularly risky and the women who did this were known as the Suicide Group.

The Mounds are man-made, created from spoil heaps formed when the bomb factory was demolished in the 1960s. They were landscaped in the 1970s and are now an attractive mixture of woodland, ponds and meadow. In addition, Pestfurlong Moss contains remnants of bog. The varied habitats provide food, shelter and breeding areas for a wealth of plants and animals. 

The Woodland Trust were gifted this land by Warrington New Town Development Corporation with the agreement that it would be held in trust for the benefit of the community and maintained accordingly. Since they took over, very little has been done other than a little coppicing and thinning where the over-growth becomes a real hazard to visitors and neighbouring properties. Some remedial work was done to 'some' of the paths a few years ago when their condition became intolerable but, apart from that, zilch. In other words, the cost to Woodland Trust has been negligible.

So What’s My Beef?

Well to understand that, we need to go back a few years. The story is taken up by a neighbour and good friend of mine who has always used the mounds for exercise and walking their dog. “When I retired I made contact with The Woodland Trust as the area was a disgrace, lots of litter and the like. I asked if they would supply me with a litter picker and some bags. Out of that grew the idea of a small group of fellow dog walkers working together for the good of the area.  We managed to get the benches repaired, and a bench placed at the ponds by nagging and chatting to the bosses at the Woodland Trust” It all sounds good doesn’t it? And it was, improvements were gradually being made by a little gang of friends making a difference!

The Takeover

The Woodland Trust recommended that the dog walkers became an official group, as that permits them to apply for grants to improve the area. This coincided with Cameron’s ‘Big Society’ and the involvement of a local Tory Councillor who needed to raise his profile, coupled with that was the inevitable involvement of the ‘tree hugger brigade’. This little band of do-gooders took over the little band of dog walkers, insisting that they had to have a committee, a constitution and a bank account!

At this point, my friend one of the original instigators resigned, committees and constitutions wasn’t what they intended when they formed their little group, all they wanted to do was keep the area tidy.

The group now has a ‘Management Committee’ with a Chairperson (the Tory Councillor of course), a Secretary, a Treasurer and a Membership ‘Officer’. The Group has a ‘Purpose’ statement “The Group exists to provide a forum for and opportunities for involvement by the local community and organisations, who have an interest in the sustainable management and use of Gorse Covert Mounds. In so doing it aims to enhance the enjoyment, biodiversity, health, safety and education value of an important community resource” – Buzz word city hey? Problem is, it’s alienated the very people whose idea it was in the first place. 

Over Zealous Stupidity

As usual when these groups go all official they get very precious about what they see as their domain and oppose anything and everything they disagree with.  

A couple of years ago some lads built a small camp in the woods , set it up with seats and had some fun, it’s what lads do, it was harmless, and the local police said it was doing no harm, the chairman of the group wasn’t having this though, so he tore it down! Wasn’t it Dale Carnegie who wrote “How To Win Friends and Influence People” obviously this guy has never read that book? The results of his actions were to “piss-off” the original members even more.

A statement in the group’s constitution is the usual politically correct “everyone should have the right to the safe enjoyment of these woodlands that is consistent with these values, regardless of their sex, or sexual orientation, religion, culture, ethnic or racial identity, disability or age”

Good disabled access then will be allowed. Well I walked the mounds this morning and I challenge any disabled person to do the same. They can’t even get through the gate if they’re in a wheelchair. There was originally a perfectly good gate giving access near to the ponds, that was replaced with a metal swing gate that requires a "radar" key to open it, so if you are in a wheelchair or have a child in a buggy and do not have a key, your only way in is to go through the wooded area to the side which is thick with mud. In addition, to enable them to fit the gate they cut away at the slope of the small hill, so now the whole area is a flooded mud bath not only when it rains but through the whole of winter. So whilst saying all the right politically correct things what happens on the ground is something totally different, sounds familiar in the political world doesn’t it?

Destruction not Conservation

As with all tree hugging do-gooder groups, they like to do what they think is best for us. Well this lot have gone well beyond their self-declared remit. Their constitution declares they “will work with others to enrich and protect the woodland and its natural vegetation and wildlife and to encourage activities that are in harmony with nature”. How will they do this? Well destruction of the areas of rhododendrons has been one item, why? What will this really achieve? Rhododendrons are often used extensively as ornamental plants in landscaping; they are used for their structure, size, flowers, and the fact that many of them are evergreen. So a perfect fit you would think? Nope, the group are in the process of ripping them all out.

Just to the right of the main Pestfurlong Hill and before the area of woodland is a flat area, which over years has become dry and fairly flat, it is used by the young kids to play hide and seek, and by dog walkers as a good area for playing catch with their mutts.  It did have young seedling trees growing on it, but the chairman and his gang have cut them down, their intention is to allow it to flood and revert to what it was, a bog, they believe that it is in the area of the oldest bog in the area and therefore it is important for our futures. Utter rubbish, nothing round here was as it was, there are plenty of ponds around the mounds and in winter, off the paths it’s virtually all bog, so we don’t need anymore.

Yes, I admit some improvements have been made in recent years. About 3 years ago they re-topped some paths, but such a poor job was done that they are already breaking down! Blame seems to be being laid at the doors of the contractor however I suspect it should be laid at the door of the specifier.

The chairman is currently moaning about rabbits eating the willow he’s been planting which he wants to grow and sell it. He’s looking at purchasing metal fencing to protect them. So no natural order allowed here, the little bunnies are just doing what bunnies do, stop discriminating against them guys.

At The End of The Day

At the end of the day, this land is not an ancient moss land, it’s all man made, so why treat it like it’s something else. We have Risley Moss down the road if you want special interest.

It’s often said it’s better to do the small things well than the big things badly. This is a case in point. Most of the locals who I speak to just want a nice walk, with good paths, they are not wanting flooded fields and the chopping down of the rhododendron bushes or of nice trees just because they're not indigenous to the area. A quote from a local who uses the area regularly sums it up "Quite frankly, I don't give a toss about the greater crested newt or how invasive the rhododendrons are; I just want somewhere to exercise my dog and meet other like-minded people"

Instead of flooding fields to recreate old bogs sort the drainage across the site out so people can stray off the paths all year round; sort the disabled access out so disabled people can truly use this wonderful asset; don't replace gates that don't need replacing; sort the motor bikers out who wreck the paths riding them. These simple things will all make a bigger difference to the Big Society of Gorse Covert.

M&S Blue Harbour? F**k right off!

Traditionally clothing for middle-aged men wasn’t a problem, they all looked like their dads and they all looked like each other. Nowadays things are different, I just don’t know what to wear. You don’t want to look like your dad, and the only thing you want less than that is to look like your son.

I know an architect who’s about 52 yet he dresses like an 18 year old. The latest trainers (always Nike or Adidas); the latest style of pants or designer jeans. The latest labels in T-shirts and sweatshirts. He even wore those strange Puffa jackets when they were in fashion. His clothes have zips and Velcro in all sorts of unexpected places. His trousers have all sorts of pockets in them, some of them unusable. He has bomber jackets and leather jackets and a vast collection of trainers. Have you ever heard anything so daft? Now because he’s an architect he gets away with it, this eccentricity has become his trademark and probably suits his character. I do think this behaviour is halfway to certifiable though. Personally I’d rather join the Hare Krishna movement and shuffle down Market Street in Manchester chanting and ringing finger tambourines than go out in the street dressed like he does. What could possibly be more ridiculous than a man in his 50’s pretending to be a teenager?

I might not be in my 50’s yet, but I don’t want to dress younger than I am. On the other hand, I don’t want to dress like my dad. So what should I do? Should I wear what our dads wore, or the alternative, which seems to involve paying ridiculous sums of money for more comfortable clothes that have all those designer labels on the outside? At one time, labels were things that went on the inside and were a bleeding nuisance if they popped out. Why should I be a walking billboard for a multinational clothes business? I also object to the ludicrous difference in price of this reasonably okay plain black sweatshirt and this reasonably okay plain black sweatshirt with ‘Timberland’ written on it. So most of the time I just won’t go there, and if I have, it’s usually under duress, or it’s been a gift.

Marks & Spencer

So what do I end up with? I don’t particularly want to wear designer labels, and I don’t want to wear old git stuff. So I end up with one of those sub-designer, mass-produced but not quite total rubbish things like ‘Blue Harbour’ from Marks & Spencers. Now what could possibly be sadder than that?

Shopping in M&S feels like a sure sign that it’s all over. I find myself browsing the rails and the racks, desperately trying to find something I don’t actually hate. I glance up and all around me are a load of totally boring bastards, who look as though they have had their spirits ripped out of them with their barbeque tongs, almost always out shopping with their wives. He’s looking bored, depressed, repressed and generally hopeless, while she’s rifling through a load of stripy rugby shirts to try to find one that will make him look even more fat-headed than he does now. And then it all gets worse because I think, ‘Oh, my God, that’s how I look!’ and at this moment I hot-foot it out of the shop as fast as my fat little legs will take me.

So Where To Go?

I can just about stand to go into GAP or NEXT, but if I suddenly find myself surrounded by teenagers, I feel a cold sweat creeping over me and can’t get out fast enough. Top Shop? – Wouldn’t even dream of going in. Burtons? - Do they still exist? Anyway, too boring. I find the answer is to go into one of those big department stores like Debenhams where they have all the different ranges, so if I accidently stray into something too young for me; I can beat a hasty retreat without too much indignity. In Debenhams you can toy with the idea of buying something by Jasper Conran or Rocha John Rocha, without making the commitment of going into a dedicated store and looking daft when you see the prices they charge in them places.

Variations on a Theme

One little problem that I have is that I only tend to wear black, blue or grey, so I’ve got literally dozens of tiny variations on this theme. But then, just now and again, I find myself somewhere wondering if I should be daring and ring the changes with say a rugby shirt in maroon with horizontal black stripes. As I’m about to reconcile myself with what, for me, is the equivalent of coming out as gay, I discover that it’s got the number ‘12’ written on the back. I hastily return it to the shelf as though I’ve just been given an electric shock. The idea of walking around with a number on my back, or on my left tit as though I was some kind of pensioned off sportsman seems so utterly ridiculous to me that, now, I can hardly breathe when I think about it.

Going off subject a little, I do think it’s hilarious that the only people wearing tracksuits in the street are usually around 30 stone! They probably order Diet Coke with their large Big Mac meal too. What’s going on in their heads? Are we supposed to think they are Olympic medal winners in pie-eating, or maybe off-duty sumo wrestlers?

Anyway back to the subject in hand. Eventually I find myself back in M&S, where I finally settle for yet another black sweatshirt, with the slight concession that this one has a different coloured collar. It may also have that little tag on one side with the red flag or whatever it is on it, but at least I know I can cut that off when I get home. Blue Harbour? Fuck right off!

#UKIP – A Few Niggling Doubts

Let me first of all say I’ve been a UKIP supporter since after the last General Election. Our mate Cameron started to make fundamental changes which he never said he would (Top down NHS reform, Decimation of the armed forces etc). Basically, as a Tory supporter all my life I felt let down by them. UKIP stand for everything I believe, so since 2011 I’ve supported Mr Farage and his merry brand of Brits, I’ve even been to a few local UKIP meetings. In that time we’ve seen UKIP support consistently growing, getting bigger and bigger all the time. I still support them, but more and more I wonder if their popularity could ultimately  be their (and the country’s) downfall.

Europe

UKIP’s primary reason for existing is to get us out of Europe something I support. I’m proud that along with a little Yankee help this small country of ours has been the liberator of our continental cousins on two occasions. The sacrifices of our brave heroes on the battlefields of Europe must never be forgotten both by ourselves and the rest of Europe.

I don’t subscribe to the theory that we might have won the war, but we are losing the peace, and that Germany is now ruling the roost through the back door of the EU. Believe it or not I am not anti-Europe but I’m vehemently opposed to any of our laws, rules, defences or controls of our sovereignty being given over to Europe.

I want the UK to trade with our nearest neighbours but I definitely don’t want a single currency or our laws being made by faceless bureaucrats in Brussels or Strasbourg. I’m not old enough to remember Ted Heath taking us into the ‘Common Market’, but fair game, we did have a referendum over it. What I am positive of though is that most Brits who voted then, thought the vote was about joining a common market not forming a United States of Europe, which is what it’s become.

I don’t think wanting to keep control of your borders, your armed forces, your laws, your sovereignty and even your imperial measures is a sign of being either a racist or a little Englander. It’s just proof that you are proud of being an island race, proud of your culture and history and want to remain resolutely British. This is essentially UKIP’s mantra, and I support exit from Europe wholeheartedly. Europe will still trade with us whether we’re in the EU or not, we’ll still holiday there, we just won’t operate under their dictates.

Immigration and Asylum

This country has a proud tradition of inviting and welcoming other nationalities to join us and in fact I truly believe we are the most tolerant and welcoming nation in the World. This proud tradition extends to providing a safe haven for those fleeing persecution and long may that continue. Nigel Farage recently pushed the Government to take our share of Syrian refugees, which proves my point, UKIP aren’t a racist party. Of course it is true that in recent years through our chaotic immigration controls, we have let in people who are playing the system or abusing our hospitality but I would never want us to turn away genuine refugees.

What has gone wrong has been the unfettered, uncontrolled opening of our borders to all and sundry, to an extent where our infrastructure can’t cope, the NHS, social services, housing and education are all splitting at the seams with the population growth in a time of austerity. UKIP advocate controlled immigration to alleviate these problems, I agree, don’t shut the door, but only let in those who will benefit our economy, much like Australia does, nobody calls the Australians a bunch of racists for controlling who enters their country so why should we be classed in that way?

So again, with regards to immigration and asylum seekers I agree with UKIP and trust them to stick to what they say, unlike the other parties.

The Lunatics

UKIP has many members who are passionate about it’s policies and it’s common sense approach, which is great, just what I’m looking for. However it does have its share of ‘lunatics’, these are the people who the press and the other parties jump on to discredit UKIP. What’s worse is there appears to be yet another one appearing every week. They give the wrong impression of the party - or is it the right one ? I’m beginning to wonder !! Nigel Farage has said he wants to clamp down on the “Walter Mitty characters” that too often make UKIP look like a care home for fruitcakes. I’m afraid ““Walter Mitty characters” is too kindly, Nigel.              

Most famous was Godfrey Bloom. Remember the whole “Bongo Bongo Land” outburst and comments about women cleaning behind the fridge. His latest was asking a disabled student at Oxford if he was Richard III, the medieval king with a deformed spine. Bloom is not a Walter Mitty character, he is pond life in a bow tie.

Then there was UKIP Councillor David Silvester who wrote a letter to his local newspaper saying that the deluge of floods was caused because of David Cameron’s successful move to change the law about same-sex marriage. Fruit loop !!

Cast your mind back twelve months to Geoffrey Clark, this is the guy who suggested compulsory abortion in order to bring down the deficit. Another nut job tarnishing the UKIP name and cause.

Then, the most recent – and potentially most damaging – the issue of Mujeeb Bhutto, A man who served as UKIP's Commonwealth spokesman for a year and is the former leader of a kidnapping gang in Pakistan. Bhutto's gang were behind a high-profile kidnapping in Karachi in 2004 and he then took a £56,000 ransom payment in Manchester. In 2005, Bhutto admitted being the gang's "boss" and was jailed for seven years by a UK court. It’s not like UKIP could plead ignorance to this. He may have now resigned but the media have leapt on him therefore soiling the UKIP name further.

Yes, it is better to root out the "loonies" early than to tolerate them only for them to bring the party into disrepute later on. However it’s getting closer to the General Election and they’re still coming out the woodwork. It would be a tragedy if UKIP’s common sense credo were derailed by a gaggle of loony bins like this lot.

A Vote for UKIP is a vote for Labour

This is my biggest concern of all with UKIP. The party and its supporters are largely made up of disillusioned Tories like myself. Admittedly the meetings I’ve been to have had a lot of ex Labour voters there however predominantly its ex-Tory.

My big fear is come the General Election next year, UKIP will split the Conservative vote to a point where neither get in, leaving the door wide open for another Labour Government. This would be a catastrophe for the economy, especially the anti-business rhetoric coming out of Labour at present, penalising high achievers with the higher tax rate, talk of taxing businesses on turnover instead of profit, not forgetting the Unions getting a foot hold back in Number Ten.

I’m confident there is nothing remotely mad about UKIP’s belief that the future of Britain should be decided by the British, that’s a given.

So this is my issue, do I stick with UKIP as they match my beliefs and end up tainted with the loony brush and a Labour government for the next five years, or do I listen to Cameron and his insistence that we’ll have an EU in/out referendum when the country can speak.

A big decision and a year to decide?    The clock’s ticking !!