Kier Property Asset Management Report to Asset Management Group

Kier Property Asset Management – Report to Members’ Briefing South West Community Assembly

Date: 10 th February, 2011

Subject: Burbage, Houndkirk and Hathersage Moors

Summary

There are approximately fifty six square kilometres of uplands in public sector or charitable ownership on the western edge of Sheffield containing habitats of both national and international importance and providing some of the most popular destinations for outdoor recreation in the Peak District National Park. This report seeks support to develop and extend a unique partnership approach to secure the long term sustainability of this wild and open landscape.

What does this mean for people within the South West Community Assembly Area?

The principal outcomes for people within the Assembly area are the prospect of:

 A sustainable future for a cherished landscape thriving with wildlife and accessible to all  A robust framework of stakeholder engagement enabling the local community to directly influence the management of the moors, developing local pride and involvement in an area of international importance for people and wildlife  Increased recreational opportunities through integrated access routes between individual moors in different ownerships and into and out of Sheffield  Improved public transport links, coupled with bold new volunteering opportunities and a co-ordinated programme of participative learning, resulting in  An increased sense of public ownership and enhanced opportunities for even more diverse groups of people to enjoy, appreciate and ultimately support the area  Better control of inappropriate and damaging activities  A diverse range of upland habitats from bogs to meadows, maintained in excellent condition supporting healthy populations of all characteristic upland species. Outcomes and Sustainability

The specific outcomes from the recommendations of this report will be to:

 Support the development of a cross cutting Sheffield Moors Partnership committed to working across the boundaries of separate ownerships to establish a leading partnership model on how the uplands should be managed into the future for people and wildlife  Explore the opportunities to roll out the exiting Eastern Moors Partnership model with the National Trust/RSPB for the benefit of the Council’s Burbage, Houndkirk and Hathersage Moors.

The principle objective of both these outcomes is to ensure the long term sustainability of this exceptional area.

Full Proposal

Background

Burbage Houndkirk and Hathersage Moors (as shown outlined on the attached plan) were acquired by the City Council’s former Water Committee in the 1930’s when the Council had responsibility for the City’s water supply. Rather than transferring to Yorkshire Water on Local Government reorganisation in 1974, the moors were retained in the Council’s Estates Committee and have subsequently been managed as part of the Council’s rural estate.

The moors extend to 890 hectares (2,200 acres) and are one of the most popular destinations for outdoor recreation in the Peak District, being open to public access under the CROW Act with an extensive network of footpaths and two byways used by off road 4 by 4 vehicles, trial and mountain bikes. The site is a popular destination for informal walking, climbing, bouldering, bird watching and similar activities with a number of organised orienteering, fell running and other events also being held each year. Principally, the site is valued for its wild and open character in such close proximity to the city.

The moors are part of the Eastern Moors Peak District Site of Special Scientific Interest and the North Peak Environmentally Sensitive Area, supporting a range of upland habitats suitable for a significant number of upland birds including Ring Ouzel and Golden Plover.

There are areas where illegal activity by off road vehicles has led to extensive damage to the moor and the sheer volume of visitors means that erosion is an ongoing problem. Working in partnership with Moors for the Future, some of the most heavily used footpaths have been improved and a scheme to restore moorland damage by off road vehicle activity, recently featured on the BBC’s ‘Countryfile’ programme, has been jointly funded by the Council, National Grid and Natural England. Maintaining a sustainable balance between the demands of visitors and the ecological value of the moor is an increasing challenge and would be impossible without the close working relationships which have developed with the Peak Park Authority, Natural England, the Moors for the Future Partnership, South Yorkshire Police, the National Trust, the grazing tenant and other stakeholders.

The moors form part of a block of approximately 56 sq. km. of contiguous moorland, held in the ownership of the National Trust, the Peak Park Authority and the Council.

The Eastern Moors and the emerging Sheffield Moors Partnership

Grappling with some of the same issues as the City Council in respect of their adjoining Eastern Moors, an area of 2,495 hectares, the Peak Park Authority looked to extend partnership working to bring new resources to secure the long term sustainability of this block of moorland. Following a lengthy procurement process, The National Trust and RSPB have recently been appointed as strategic partners taking a 15 year lease of the Eastern Moors following a period of stakeholder engagement between July and September this year.

Consultation on the Eastern Moors proposals stimulated further debate amongst adjacent landowners around the merits of extending this model of collaboration and partnership working into the wider area of moorland to cover the whole of the 56 sq km of moorland held in public sector or charitable ownership. Following further exploration of the opportunities, a consultation framework to develop and formalise a joint vision and overarching management principles for the whole area is being considered to formalise a ‘Sheffield Moors Partnership’ between the Council, Peak District National Park Authority, Sheffield Wildlife Trust, the National Trust, RSPB and Natural England. It is difficult to overstate the advantages such a ground breaking partnership could deliver, not only in securing conservation of the ecology, landscape and cultural heritage of the area, but also in extending visitor opportunities in a sustainable manner. There are clearly economies of scale to be derived from increased collaboration and the opportunity to pool resources to draw down funding which would be unavailable to individual landowners in isolation. Taking a holistic view of the entire area offers the opportunity to extend public participation, develop additional community benefit and enhance biodiversity without detriment to the essential character of the moors. The purpose of the emerging partnership is to lead an innovative collaboration to establish and deliver the vision of the Sheffield Moors as the UK’s leading model of how the uplands should be managed into the future for people and wildlife. Grazing Tenancy

Running alongside these developments, the Council had to address a number of issues concerning the grazing tenancy of Burbage, Houndkirk and Hathersage Moors. The moors had been let on a secure Agricultural Holdings Act Tenancy from 1991 subject to an agreement with Natural England under the North Peak Environmentally Sensitive Area (ESA) Scheme to manage the site in accordance with a moorland management plan.

However a number of issues had arisen with the tenancy:

 There had been outbreaks of sheep scab on the moors, a notifiable disease, that hadn’t been adequately addressed resulting in action being taken by animal welfare officers and two convictions.  The perimeter fencing was in poor condition resulting in sheep straying onto the highway and other land, giving rise to numerous complaints.  There were concerns about the conservation value of some areas of the holding and compliance with the terms of the ESA scheme.  Other breaches of the tenancy agreement had been noted.

In view of the above the tenancy was terminated on 25th March 2010.

Given the emerging partnership model, it was agreed that interim arrangements for managing sheep grazing on the moor would be the most appropriate way forward so that opportunities to extend partnership working could be explored further. The National Trust and RSPB suggested that it would be cost effective to include consultation on the Council’s moorland in the arrangements for stakeholder engagement on the Eastern Moors partnership and they were prepared to undertake such consultation in collaboration with Council Officers at no cost to the Council. Additionally, the National Trust offered assistance in dealing with the interim arrangements to ensure that through their local presence the fencing and livestock husbandry issues were managed closely. Consequently, a short term Farm Business Tenancy to the Trust for 18 months from 25.03.10 to 29.09.11 was granted and approved under the delegated powers of the Director of Property and Facilities Management. Under the detailed arrangements, the Trust have under let the grazing rights for this interim period to Mr David Robinson who is the City Council’s tenant of Woodseats Farm, Bradfield Dale and the Peak District National Park’s Tenant of the adjoining North Lees estate. Following the conclusion of these arrangements, the fencing has been repaired and the ESA agreement has been transferred to the Trust to ensure compliance with the Moorland Management Plan. Consultation Outcomes

Five workshops, at a cost of £7,750 and considerable staff time, were facilitated and paid for by the National Trust and RSPB in July and August, structured around the key themes of community engagement, access and recreation, wildlife and historic landscape, farming and land management. The workshops were attended by 177 people, with some 145 different individuals as some people attended more than one workshop. Overall some 800 comments were contributed as collated in the summary report attached. The workshops covered not only the proposals for the Eastern Moors Partnership but also the principle of extending these arrangements to the Council’s Burbage, Houndkirk and Hathersage moors and the vision for a wider Sheffield Moors Partnership.

A subsequent follow up workshop was held on 11th September to feed back the emerging ideas and establish draft management principles drawn from the outputs from the earlier workshops. Attendees selected up to 5 principles in accordance with their or their organisation’s priorities. The results in order of priority were as follows:

Guiding Management Principle Number of votes The wild and open nature of the site should not be 41 compromised There should be a long term vision 32 Exemplar management to achieve outstanding 29 biodiversity Appropriate grazing to achieve conservation 26 objectives Protecting and celebrating the rich cultural heritage 22 People and community involvement at the heart of 13 all activities Working with the changing climate, adapting 13 management as required High quality and appropriate visitor experience 12 An accessible multi user site 11 A connected network of access 10 Delivering a range of public benefits 5 Inspiring visitor experiences 5

Next Steps

Having established the potential benefits of a more joined up approach to the future of the Sheffield Moors, there are a number key decisions to be taken by the partners. Following a recent workshop, terms of reference and a framework for further consultation and public engagement for the shape and direction of the ‘Sheffield Moors Partnership’ are being considered before approval is sought to formalise the proposed partnership.

In respect of Burbage, Houndkirk and Hathersage Moors the Council now has the opportunity to consider the outcome of consultation to date and the options for the future management of this area.

Options for the future tenure of Burbage Houndkirk and Hathersage Moors.

There would appear to be three alternatives following termination of the existing interim arrangements at the end of September.

OPTION ADVANTAGES DISADVANTAGES A. Retain direct 1. Overall control 1. Existing managerial management of the remains with the and ‘on the ground’ site and let the Council giving total resources are grazing rights direct flexibility over use and considered inadequate to an agricultural management. to ensure the long term operator, the sustainability of the Council maintaining site, a situation which is strategic and day to unlikely to improve in day responsibility. the light of anticipated budget reductions.

2. The opportunity to optimise the benefit of environmental grant aid for the benefit of the site is unlikely to be fully exploited.

3. Potential additional resources from third party partner organisations will not be available.

4. Public engagement is unlikely to be developed.

B. Undertake a 1. Additional expertise 1. Cost – such an procurement and resources available exercise would be exercise to find a to secure the long term costly both in cash and new partner sustainability of the site staff/contractor organisation to and to assist with day resources. assist the Council in to day management. the long term future 2. Timescale – finalising management of the 2. Likely to result in the arrangements for moors wider consultation and the Peak Park’s Eastern public participation. Moors has taken around two years. 3. Additional resources will result in better 3. Loss of direct control conservation outcomes and management of the and community benefit. site.

4. Fairness – all potential third party organisations would be given the opportunity to tender. C. Enter into All those at B above 1. Loss of direct control negotiation with the with the following and management of the National Trust/RSPB additional benefits: site. with a view to entering into similar 1. The close proximity 2. Lack of opportunity arrangements to of both the Eastern for other potential those made for the Moors Partnership’s partners. Peak Park’s Eastern operational base at Moors. Barbrook Reservoir, and the National Trust’s operations at the Longshaw Estate, would be beneficial to the effective day to day management and staffing of the Council’s adjoining moors.

2. Lessons learned from setting up the Eastern Moors Partnership could be applied to the benefit of the proposed arrangements.

3. The NT/RSPB partnership has been instrumental in driving forward the wider vision for the Sheffield Moors and is fully signed up to the guiding management principles established through extensive consultation.

3. Greatly reduced costs.

4. Faster timescale.

Conclusion

On balance, it is suggested that the opportunities presented through extending the existing Eastern Moors Partnership arrangements with the National Trust/RSPB for the benefit of the Council’s Burbage, Houndkirk and Hathersage Moors should be explored further with a view to reporting the outcome back to a future meeting of the South West Assembly for further consideration.

Financial implications

There are no immediate financial implications associated with the recommendations of this report. Progressing the proposed partnership arrangements for Burbage, Houndkirk and Hathersage Moors and the broader aspirations for the Sheffield Moors will undoubtedly bring additional revenue funding to the benefit of the local community.

Legal implications

There are no legal implications associated with the recommendations of this report. Any long term leasing arrangements which may be recommended in the future would be subject to the procedure for the disposal of public open space under S123 2A of the Local Government Act 1972.

Equality of Opportunity implications

The development of the proposed partnership arrangements would undoubtedly extend the ‘access for all’ opportunities and support the Council’s social inclusion priorities.

Human Resource Implications None Environmental and Sustainability Implications The development of the proposed partnering arrangements for the Council’s moors will be instrumental in securing the long term sustainability of this unique upland habitat and that of the wider 56 square kilometres of ‘Sheffield Moors’ on the eastern edge of the Peak District. The vision is to restore a diverse mosaic of habitats of both national and international importance to a healthy condition, providing the moors with resilience to future climate change.

Mitigation of risk

A framework of community engagement and consultation underpinning the proposed partnership arrangements will continue to capture all risks associated with the recommendations of this report.

Alternative Options

See those identified in the full report above.

Reasons for Recommendations

The recommendations are made following an evaluation of the opportunities to secure the long term sustainability of the Council’s moorlands and the wider ‘Sheffield Moors’ through extended collaborative and partnership working.

Recommendations That the South West Community Assembly:

1. Welcome and endorse the emerging Sheffield Moors Partnership and support further consultation to establish the vision, guiding management principles and terms of reference for the Partnership. 2. Agree to further exploratory discussions with the National Trust/RSPB partnership to consider the benefit of extending the Eastern Moors Partnership model to the Council’s Burbage, Houndkirk and Hathersage Moors. 3. Request a report back on the outcome of such discussions to a future meeting of the Assembly.

David Howarth Head of Property Asset Management KAPS 29th January 2011