Jacqui Wheeler explained the four sub groups had met in October and the minutes of the previous meetings of the sub groups were included in the agenda/ dropping the name ‘Common’ was being discussed at the next Friends group meeting. Lisa Hughes stated all the sub groups were worried about nuisance dog owners and felt the term ‘Common’ would make people feel they could use it but, it was agricultural land. Jacqui Wheeler said that simply calling the land a “Common” did not give it the legal status of “Common”.   However, James Copas contended that the term Common did sound like anyone could use the land. The Chairman stated the Forum needed to find out why it was named that way in the first place. James Copas said people think Commons are owned by the National Trust and that that is not the case with Battlemead.

Jacqui Wheeler circulated photos of the access gate at Battlemead which had   been brought up in the Battlemead accessibility sub group meeting as the opening is less than a metre wide which is not complaint with government guidance. The Battlemead accessibility sub group had agreed it needed alteration and the Council was consulting with the LAF for opinions on this issue.   Lisa Hughes stated there was much better access a bit further down the road. It would save money to leave it as it was. The access point was very narrow and quite dangerous to use as it was right by a very busy road. A more suitable access point was approximately 100 metres away. The Chairman said the Borough needed to be careful because if the gate was removed, there may be objections if the Council ever wanted to have the gate reinstated; so it was better to improve it and make it more useable. James Copas said it would either need to be set back and remove the nearby tree or, just use the other entrance. The Chairman stated he felt both crossings were not safe to use, but that the gate should be left as it was and the crossing at the car park be highlighted as the accessible entrance to the site.

Jacqui Wheeler explained the map on page 32 in the agenda showed signage related to wildlife was to be installed on 31 January 2020; and page 36 of the agenda showed the minutes of the biodiversity group with recommendations at the end of the page; it set out a vision with basic principles of managing Battlemead and she wanted to bring that to the Local Access Forum to see if the Forum wanted to support the vision and have it recorded. Alan Keene said he had no objections to the points but it needed to say something about access. Steve Gillions said seasonal access needed to be based on evidence, there needed to be a balance between wildlife and access. The Chairman stated the Council did not know about the extent of the wildlife habitat when it bought the land, which has created issues regarding access to the site. He added the Forum could go back and say it supports their recommendations but it needed to say something on access and also to balance between access users and wildlife. The Local Access Forum was generally supportive but the Friends of Battlemead needed to strike a balance.

Lisa Hughes stated the volunteer sub group of Battlemead had been engaging with dog walkers to ensure their dogs were kept on leads at the site.

The Local Access Forum unanimously agreed it was happy to support the recommendations in the report.