A Land For All Seasons booklet celebrates our precious fields and urges action against more losses to come
Pictured above are Carol Morrell Smith and granddaughter Evelyn Shaw with a copy of a new booklet being published by the Silsden Campaign for the Countryside. A Land For All Seasons tells the story of the fields between Hawber Cote and ancient Brown Bank Lane where, despite unprecedented objections, builders Persimmon have been given permission to site 138 houses.
The book features words and pictures contributed by local people and combines a celebration of the history and wildlife of these much-loved, footpath-crossed fields with a lament for what will be lost. Campaign chair Mark Wogden says the book is also a call to action to save remaining farmland for future generations. As reported in my blog of May 9th 2022, Persimmon controls a much larger adjoining area from Brunthwaite to Brown Bank where, subject to planning permission, a further 150 homes could be built by 2030 following completion in 2026 of the first phase of 138 homes. 
Carol Morrell Smith, whose family history in Silsden goes back centuries, is among residents who have contributed memories of happy times walking the fields that are now threatened.
The book includes work by local artists Jo Whitehead, Fran Elliott and Louise Limb, stunning wildlife images by nature photographer David Dimmock and the thoughts of local children, who express their fears about climate change and loss of biodiversity. Priced at £4.99, the book will be launched at a coffee morning (9.30-11.30) at St James' Community Hall on March 9th before becoming available in local shops.
Pictured above are Carol Morrell Smith and granddaughter Evelyn Shaw with a copy of a new booklet being published by the Silsden Campaign for the Countryside. A Land For All Seasons tells the story of the fields between Hawber Cote and ancient Brown Bank Lane where, despite unprecedented objections, builders Persimmon have been given permission to site 138 houses. 
The book features words and pictures contributed by local people and combines a celebration of the history and wildlife of these much-loved, footpath-crossed fields with a lament for what will be lost. Campaign chair Mark Wogden says the book is also a call to action to save remaining farmland for future generations. As reported in my blog of May 9th 2022, Persimmon controls a much larger adjoining area from Brunthwaite to Brown Bank where, subject to planning permission, a further 150 homes could be built by 2030 following completion in 2026 of the first phase of 138 homes. 
The book includes work by local artists Jo Whitehead, Fran Elliott and Louise Limb, stunning wildlife images by nature photographer David Dimmock and the thoughts of local children, who express their fears about climate change and loss of biodiversity. Priced at £4.99, the book will be launched at a coffee morning (9.30-11.30) at St James' Community Hall on March 9th before becoming available in local shops.
