Council could prosecute over tree order breaches at site used for clay pigeon shoots

INVESTIGATORS HAVE warned they may prosecute over work done in woodland covered by Tree Preservation Orders where a farmer is seeking planning permission for a clay pigeon shoot. Alex Tue, from the hamlet of Bromley on the border between Barnsley and Sheffield, wants to establish a full-time weekly shoot in woodland at Westwood, where meetings have been held under ‘permitted rights’ rules which allows for land to be used 28 days a year without permission. But the plans have generated objections and Tankersley Parish Council has had an extended dialogue about the shoot and the subsequent planning application. Now a council officer has told the parish clerk the local authority was “considering prosecution in relation to works carried out on site that breached Tree Preservation Orders”, according to parish council minutes. The parish council has also questioned whether the presence of permanent structures on the site mean the 28 days mount up even when shooting does not actually take place. Meanwhile, Council has Barnsley confirmed it is requesting further noise surveys to be conducted after initial assessments covered only communities within Barnsley, rather than across the boundary in Sheffield. Planning officials had to request the noise survey – which was not supplied with the original application for the site off Westwood Lane – and when it was complete, it showed noise from gunfire was too low to be recorded at locations where complaints had been previously generated. Matt Gladstone, executive director for place at Barnsley Council, said: “There are still issues under assessment around this planning application. “There are several matters that we will be speaking to the applicant about before arriving at a final view. “We can confirm that we’ll be asking the applicant to carry out further noise surveys from other locations including High Green in Sheffield. “In relation to the tree works that have been carried out, this remains one of the planning application assessment considerations. There is more work to be done on this application before a decision can be made.”