When the TV show aired in the 1960s, Camberwick Green’s much-loved residents Windy Miller and Dr Mopp helped defend the fictional village’s idyllic lifestyle every week.
But now real-life residents of the village considered the inspiration for the children’s stop-motion classic are facing a family crisis of their own, warning that house-building plans in the area will “destroy the countryside”.
Housing developer Taylor Wimpey plans to build hundreds of new homes in and around the historic village of Wivelsfield Green, which currently has a population of just under 3,000.
Campaign group No To WivelsTown, which is believed to have been inspired by Gordon Murray’s 1966 TV series, has warned that recent development has overburdened local services and further construction will destroy their villages. inspired by this village.
Locals dressed up as Camberwick Green characters, including Windmill owner Wendy Miller, baker Mickey Murphy and flower seller Mrs Corbett, to protest against threats to their village way of life.
The first colour-coded children’s show, the 15-minute show opens with a music box from which various villagers, from the police to the postman, emerge and are followed around Camberwick Green.
This was followed by Trumpton and Chigley, believed to have been inspired by Plumpton near Weaversfield, with Chigley believed to have been inspired by nearby Chai Inspired by Chailey.
Wind Miller in Camberwick Green animated TV show – Jeff Robinson
Lewes ward councilor and campaigner Sue Morris believes the threat ultimately comes from the government’s push for new housing, telling The Daily Telegraph: “We need to try and convince Angela Rayner that destroying the countryside is not the answer to the housing shortage. way.
“The government should implement more thoughtful planning policies.”
Ms Rayner launched the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF), which sets tough housing targets to meet Sir Keir Starmer’s pledge to build 1.5 million new homes.
Labor is pushing to build on poorer quality “grey belt” land within the green belt and will allow certain areas to be designated as “grey belt” despite any “rural encroachment”.
Taylor Wimpey is to build 170 new homes south of the village hall at Wivelsfield Green, with developer Cala already granted permission to build a further 96 new homes.
Worry about service overload
There are concerns that as villages continue to grow in size, some fear the villages will agglomerate into an unattractive town, which will overwhelm local services already affected by previous development.
Ms Morris said: “Local schools are full, doctors have to travel further and further afield, there is increasing flooding in the area and traffic has increased by 980 per cent in 2011.
“Pathways are disappearing into residential areas and beautiful landscapes are being ruined by featureless and expensive houses and estates.”
The Say No to WivelsTown campaign group will lobby against a planning application submitted by Taylor Wimpey in an attempt to “fight the carnage the developer is causing in the village”.
Taylor Wimpey said there had been “positive proposals” for some of the private land purchased by the developer to be opened up as public green space.
A spokesman for Taylor Wimpey said: “We have made a positive proposal to the local community to provide open space for public use on land identified in the Wivelsfield Neighborhood Plan, which is key to maintaining open views to the south of Green Road.”
“Currently, the land remains privately owned and is not accessible to the public. Under our proposals, approximately 70% of our site will be permanently designated as public open space for the enjoyment of members of the local community.
