Caravan park plan refused for site of historic fortress
PLANS to turn a historic East Riding fortress into a caravan park have been refused amid fears for nearby wildlife as a councillor said it deserved better.
East Riding Council planners voted unanimously to reject plans to convert Fort Paull, in Holderness, into a 64-pitch caravan park.
Fort owner Brian Rushworth told councillors they were attempting to find a use for the building after the death of his wife and ageing staff made the museum there unviable.
But Yorkshire Wildlife Trust planning specialist Ellen Milner said visitors walking their dogs could disturb animals and birds in Paull Holme Strays, one of the area’s most important nature reserves.
It comes as plans were first lodged with East Riding Council in 2021 after the museum and visitor centre at Fort Paull, in Battery Road, Paull, closed the previous year.
The fort’s museum opened in 2000 and showcased the history of the site which dates back to Tudor times with exhibits covering the last 500 years of war and conflict.
Plans for the caravan site proposed keeping parts of the site open to the public so people could continue to visit it.
Matthew Green, director of the Green Planning Studio, previously said the plans were a sensible proposal to preserve a heritage asset. They were backed by Historic England as a way to keep the site in use.
But four people objected to the plans along with Paull Parish Council which claimed sheer drops within its boundary posed a safety risk to guests and visitors.
Council planning officers recommended that it be refused.
Mr Rushworth told the committee a sustainable use for the site needed to be found to ensure it could survive. He said: “I lost my wife who ran the fort with me and the museum staff are all ageing, so it’s unable to carry on as a museum and we’re desperately trying to find something that’s non-intrusive to the monument.
“We think this concept of a holiday park would produce less visitors and would be less damaging to the environment around the fort, it’s the best way to preserve the fort for future generations.
“We desperately need to find a use for it, otherwise it will fall into wrack and ruin.”
But Ms Milner said visitors using a public footpath which runs through the Paull Holme Strays reserve risked disturbing birds trying to feed and roost. She added: “The disturbance comes from dogs when they’re allowed to run freely, we’ve tried to educate our members about this but we can’t enforce keeping dogs on leads on a public right of way.
“Birds change their behaviour when they’re disturbed, it takes time away from feeding and roosting and ultimately reduces their chances of survival. We had discussions with the developer but they broke down in 2023 after a satisfactory outcome was not reached.”
Fortifications at the site were first built in 1542 during Henry VIII’s reign. The fort which exists today was completed in 1864 and was one of 10 ‘Palmerstone Forts’.