Concern at bat barn plan

I have just been informed by Peterborough City Council planning that the application regarding the proposed construction of bat barn and erection of bat boxes on telegraph poles (ref 20/00282/FUL) has been approved.

This application was suddenly sprung on residents, since the previous application for full development of the Gloucester Centre site had been rejected due to the overwhelming and huge number of objections to the obscene proposal by Savills on behalf

of Build England.

Savills was told to come back with a revised proposal but to date, there have been no revised application made.

It is my belief that the Peterborough City Council wants to fulfil “the Peterborough Plan”.

The timing of this application and very prompt approval, despite many valid objections, would suggest that PCC Planning will ignore residents’ concerns and bend to pressure from PCC Leaders to “get it done”.

I have read the complete dossier of information presented by Savills as part of the application to erect bat boxes.

It would appear that we are being dazzled by fancy reports and diagrams.

Starting with reports, there are no useful comments from the PCC Wildlife Officer.

The bat survey report is pretty good and shows a degree of understanding on bat behaviour (and I do have a good knowledge of this subject).

The report correctly identified several bat roosts and deals with some decent mitigating activity.

However, they have quite clearly stated that there should be 10 bat boxes erected on mature trees within the

site boundary features.

However, this application ignores best advice and plans to erect 10 bat boxes on five telegraph poles.

These are situated on a lighted pedestrian pathway and subject to noise and other disturbances. PCC Wildlife Officer failed to comment on this diversion from the report.

According to the bat survey report, bats and their roosts are afforded a high level of protection under the Conservation of Habitats and Species Regulations 2017 (the ‘Habitat Regulations’) and under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 (as amended) with respect to disturbance of animals when using places of shelter, and obstruction of access to places of shelter.

The survey also calls for a bat barn.

I have looked at the very elegant drawing presented by Savills and would be pleased to have such a structure within my backyard.

The major issue is that you build it and hope the bats will come. In my experience, bats will return to roost sites long after they have been destroyed.

They are rather fussy animals and will select their roosting sites with care and much attention to situation,

light and noise levels, food sources, temperature variance, etc.

In other words, there are no guarantees that bats will use the bat boxes or bat barns.

Further, it will take years for bats to move from their home roosts to these new roosts.

But, Savills have an alternative way of dealing with this. This is another application for the “Phased demolition of all buildings within the site (ref 20/00411/PRIOR)”, validated 18 March 2020. This is under consideration by PCC Planning.

In summary, I strongly object to the planned erection of bat boxes on telegraph poles, since it will start the process of destruction of habitat proposed in the other application.

I strongly object that this application was approved as an isolated self-standing application, since it is tied in with destruction of established bat roosts within the Gloucester Centre.

It is disgraceful that PCC is stooping so low to get this development through in such a piecemeal fashion just to leave a legacy and fulfil “The Peterborough Plan”.

Param Deoraj Peterborough