Village land near Milford community meadow and owned by Friends of Christchurch Priory is set to go on market for £100,000

AN area of grassland near a community meadow in Milford is set to go up for sale almost a decade after it was left to a church group.

Owned by the Friends of Christchurch Priory, the site is on land close to All Saints Church in Milford and was the subject of failed planning bid in 2022 to build a four-bedroom house.

Now, the charity has indicated that the land is likely to go on the market with a guide price of £100,000, boosting community hopes that Milford Parish Council will take ownership of the entire meadow site.

As previously reported, the former owner of the land, Diane Gillespie, died in 2015 leaving one section of the site to Milford Parish Council – on the basis that should be kept as a community meadow – and a second plot to the Friends without any stipulations about how the land should be used.

A planning application by Bayview Homes was then submitted in 2022 seeking to develop the land with a four-bedroom bungalow. However, the application triggered 322 letters of objection from residents, as well as the formation of campaign group Friends of The Meadow.

The application was rejected by New Forest District Council after planning officers concluded it would have a detrimental impact on two listed buildings nearby and would not enhance the conservation area.

A subsequent planning appeal was dismissed by a government inspector who said that development would “severely” reduce the distinctive quality of the shared setting of important historic buildings. As a result of this ruling, it has been deemed unlikely planning permission will be granted for any development.

Now the Friends of Christchurch Priory has revealed a fence up to two metres high will be erected to surround the section of its land, with an access path for the public and to enable parish council maintenance staff to bring in a mower. Work is expected to take place in the next fortnight.

The land owned by Friends of Christchurch Priory will then to go up for sale on 1st November with a guide price of £100,000 by informal tender. It is understood it will be marketed by a Bournemouth-based land agent.

A Milford Parish Council spokesperson said: “We have always been clear that we would be willing and happy to take on the maintenance and upkeep of the whole site – so that it could be enjoyed by the people of Milford as a meadow in perpetuity.”

But they added: “What is also clear is that Milford Parish Council does not have the funds in reserve to purchase the land and so some sort of community involvement would be needed.”

A spokesperson for the Friends of Christchurch Priory told the A&T that it had originally proposed creating a small ditch to mark the boundary between the two areas however, this idea was rejected by Milford Parish Council over health and safety concerns. The Friends then approached the charity commission and NFDC who confirmed they could erect a simple wooden fence.

The spokesperson added: “The meadow land owned by the Friends of the Priory church will go up for sale by informal tender on 1st November 2024 for 28 days under a sealed bids system. This gives the charity more control over the final decision as to who purchases the land.”

The future of the site is set to be discussed at a meeting of Milford Parish Council on Monday evening at the village hall, 6.30pm.