I've received notification that members of the county planning committee will be visiting the Hesleden Pit Heap on the afternoon of Friday 8 September. This is to enable committee members to see for themselves the impact of the development in advance of the planning committee meeting scheduled to be held at 9.30am on Monday 11 September in County Hall: https://robcrute-blackhall.blogspot.com/2023/09/hesleden-pit-heap-planning-committee.html
Incidentally, there are rumours circulating around the community that the planning application has already been decided. Please ignore the voices of those who want you to believe that the fight is over - they're representing the wishes of the company bosses, not the best interests of our community. They want you to give up hope and stand down - and at this stage we can't afford to let them get their way.
Undoubtedly the odds are stacked against us, that always seems to be the case, however we can’t give up the fight now after a whole decade of hard slog. We have a convincing argument to put to the planning committee on 11 September. But the only chance we have of winning is if the whole community stands together behind a common cause.
Ignore the doubters and defeatists who want you to believe that this is a done deal. We've been fighting this battle for 10 years now and we mustn't fall into their trap at the last minute. If we don't continue to fight on the company will get their way and the community will pay the price for years to come.
I'll update on the site visit as soon as I have more information.
