Archives News
2007
Cornwall AONB Conference - 19th May 2007
Tin and Fishes - a story of St Just
Three new members of staff have joined the AONB Unit based in Truro. Tasha Dale is the new full-time Office Manager taking over from Karen Johns who is on a year’s maternity leave. Peter Maxted comes in as part-time Communications Officer to work closely with the AONB Partnership and promote it to the wider world. June Crossland is the new part-time Planning Officer who will take a strategic role in the delivery of AONB planning policy.
This year's Annual Cornwall AONB Conference was held on Saturday 19th May 2007 at the Falmouth Maritime Museum . The Conference gave delegates a chance to learn about the work of the Partnership, receiving presentations from Phil Dyke of the National Trust, Tim Light of the King Harry Ferry/ Fal River Links Partnership and Roger Covey, marine specialist at Natural England. The afternoon provided delegates with an opportunity to experience the Mylor and Roseland area of the Cornwall AONB from aboard one of the ferries operating on the Carrick Roads, with interesting and stimulating discussion on marine issues and climate change, a feature of the whole day.
For more information please see relevant links for the speakers:
Paul Walton, Cornwall AONB Partnership Manager
Tim Light, King Harry Ferry / Fal River Links Partnership
BOSCASTLE'S CHANGING FACE
Boscastle, one of the most picturesque villages of the Pentire Point to Widemouth section of the Cornwall AONB, was devastated by a catastrophic flood on 16th August 2004. Members of the Cornwall AONB Partnership, particularly the National Trust, North Cornwall District Council and the Environment Agency have been working hard on the sympathetic restoration of damaged buildings and a new flood defence scheme.
Last autumn the National Trust was delighted to be able to hand back a fully restored and upgraded building to the Youth Hostels Association (YHA). Of the Trust’s various buildings in Boscastle, the Youth Hostel was one of the worst damaged. As owners, it was the Trust’s responsibility to repair it so that the YHA could operate from it once more. Financial support from the YHA has helped to deliver a truly excellent restored and enhanced structure. Not only has the historic character of the building been preserved, it has enabled the hostel to be brought up to the latest standards of comfort, disabled access and flood tolerance.
Nearby, just up-river, was the National Trust warden’s house. As a single-storey building very close to the water, permanent residential occupation was no longer advisable, so the National Trust shop will move from the Old Forge into this larger building at Easter. The Trust has also bought and restored both properties neighbouring the warden's house, better enabling them to preserve the historic character of the harbour area. These buildings will provide light-refreshments outlet, three small National Trust holiday apartments and most importantly a space for North Cornwall District Council's new Boscastle Visitor's Centre
The original Boscastle Visitor Centre, built and managed by NCDC was opened in May 1994 and destroyed by the flood over ten years later. Just before the flood, the AONB Partnership had funded some brand new interpretation materials for the centre including brand new display boards which are still missing at sea! A couple of months later, a portacabin was winched into its place and this has provided a temporary facility for the last two years. Even though this temporary building was small it still saw over 80,000 visitors through its doors each year.
But now the Phoenix has arisen from the ashes. The new centre is ideally situated adjacent to the harbour, acting as a focal point for visitors. It has taken 12 months to repair the building and bring it up to an adequate specification for public use but it has now had its first visitors through its doors, the first of many no doubt who will wish to make use of the fascinating and well presented information inside.
Many local people have contributed knowledge as well as artefacts to increase the breadth of interest this wonderful new centre now holds. Part of the facility will be developed as a Local History Resource room where people will be able to research the history of the village, and in particular the flood of 2004. There is a public internet access point and people will be able to obtain a wide range of books on the area, wildlife, walks and local history.
The new centre has costed in the region of £70,000 to kit out, a substantial part of which was grant aided by Objective 1. The centre will provide interest to adults and children, visitors and locals alike and it will be available all year, 7 days a week.
North Cornwall District Council and the National Trust have worked together to move their visitor centre from the car park which importantly frees up land at the heart of the flood plain. This has allowed a greater degree of flood tolerance to be achieved within the Environment Agency’s flood defence scheme. This scheme will have an impact on the final layout of the car park and the river banks all the way to the harbour. Sadly it also means that the iconic lower bridge has to be demolished and replaced with an alternative that is designed to integrate with the flood defence scheme, yet remain sympathetic to its surroundings. The first phase of construction work on this scheme began this winter and runs through to the spring. Working with the Environment Agency the Trust will focus on ensuring the historic and natural appearance of the area is restored as much as possible.
Since the flood of 2004, a special strategy to reduce the risk of trees being washed down the River Valency in Boscastle, in the event of a severe flood, has been agreed by the Environment Agency, the National Trust and other landowners.
Three years ago the unexpected floodwaters washed away trees in the Valency Valley and, although many did not reach the village, those that did joined with other debris, including cars swept from the car park, to block both the bridges in the village.
Now a programme has been agreed that will see the woody debris in the river and floodplain removed or cut up. Regular inspections will determine floodplain and bank-side trees to be felled or coppiced.
Andrew Houghton for the Environment Agency explains: “It was clear that, as well as reducing the flood risk for Boscastle with flood defences on the rivers Jordan and Valency, we also had to look at managing the trees in the Valency Valley from Newmills down to the village".
"This tree management will complement the flood defences and help reduce the problems that we saw in the 2004 flood. We will now work with the landowners to ensure the study’s recommendations are carried out.”
The initial riverbank tree coppicing was undertaken during the winter, outside of the bird-nesting season. The Valency Valley is a popular spot for walkers as well as being an important wildlife site for a variety of species. The management plan balances the vital need for flood alleviation, whilst maintaining the important wildlife habitats and ensuring that the beauty of the valley and people’s enjoyment of the area isn’t affected.
Further information available from:
The National Trust
Sabina Eberle, National Trust Communications Officer, Devon & Cornwall - Tel. 01208 265225 or email: sabina.eberle@nationaltrust.org.uk
North Cornwall District Council:
David Attwell, NCDC Countryside Officer-
Tel: 01208 893333 or email: david.attwell@ncdc.gov.uk
TIN AND FISHES - A STORY OF ST JUST
A 'Play for Voices' by Pauline Sheppard, played at venues across Cornwall during the Spring.
it was promoted by Cornwall Arts Centre Trust Charity no. 292138 and supported by Cornish Mining World Heritage Site.
Tin & Fishes is made from real memories and personal anecdotes
and with a little editing and animation by true Cornish voices, tells a simple truth about people, place and change.
Come with us to St. Just and meet Miss Procter, “You want history,
boy, we’re bloody livin' in it.” Miss Procter also knows about the
weather, “It’s a pheenomeenon up ’ere.” She used to work at Land’s
End Radio Station where knowing the weather mattered. Meet
Matthew and Lizzie Richards who got pregnant during the blackouts
of the 3 day week in the seventies. Meet their daughter Susie who
got out of Cornwall after Geevor closed in the eighties, “ id’n nuthen
left here.” Re-live David Penhaligon’s speech, “Cornwall needs
more than deck-chairs and ice-cream.” The twins from No Go By
weren’t even born then and Jim Eddy down The Miners, he stays in
the fifties with his ferrets; “had a ferret once had muscle definition
in his back legs.” Through it all, running higgledy-piggledy like tin
through granite, Matthew Richards lives in his garden shed, on the
nineteenth level, “only he never coughed so much before.”
The past becomes a foreign country much sooner than it used to do.
In the seventies there were no mobile phones, no home computers,
no colour pictures in newspapers, no cds, television closed down at
night, and the M5 was still under construction.
St. Just has changed, Cornwall has changed. Change is inevitable;
but the way change is managed is important to the lives of
communities. It’s important to remember, you have to know where
you’ve come from in order to see where you’re going.
This new and original piece of theatre was commissioned by St. Just Heritage Area Regeneration Project and the Cornish Mining World Heritage Site, and is indebted to the Geevor Oral History Project for some of the words and memories from the last three generations in St. Just.
For further information:
Karen Willows World Heritage Site Office, Historic Environment Service
Cornwall County Council
Tel: 01872 322586 email: kwillows@cornwall.gov.uk
web: www.cornish-mining.org.uk
