Parish Council
This is my first report since 2019 which reflects what we have all being going through since the pandemic hit us in March 2020. I have been working throughout the period and although I started feeling a little guilty of having Dartmoor almost to myself during the first lockdown, this feeling soon evaporated when the unlocking began! I have never witnessed so many people visiting the area, and although it was nice to
welcome many new visitors, we, like so many other areas in the countryside, witnessed some pretty appalling antisocial behaviour.
I doubt if any of you didn’t feel lucky to live in the area we do in comparison to those confined to urban centres or in a towering block of flats, but we were met by some incredibly selfish attitudes with some people seeming hell bent on destroying the places they came to visit. Sticklepath was fortunate that it didn’t witness too much of this thank goodness and luckily, last summer didn’t see the same levels return. I am sure things will ease again now that travel abroad is back on the agenda, but I don’t believe we will ever return to normal levels especially due to the scale of development in nearby Okehampton.
The National Park Authority has taken advantage of Green Recovery Fund which has given us short term funding to increase staff on the ground including three Engagement Rangers, one of whom has been specifically involved in promoting and setting up a programme for our Junior and Youth Rangers.
Surprisingly, given the immense benefits of open spaces to people, our NP Grant was only received on April 1st and is a flat cash settlement, the same as in the previous three years, so overall we have seen a 50% cut in funding since 2010!
We are being expected to deliver on several initiatives based on the Glover Review including Nature and Climate and People and Place, but we are also awaiting a landscape strategy and outcomes framework which will highlight the key outcomes that government would like to see protected landscapes contribute towards.
There appears to be a growing gap between Government expectations and the reality of what we can deliver with ever decreasing resources. Incidentally Scottish NPs received a 5% increase in core funding whilst the Welsh NPs saw an increase of 10%!
As many of you know my Voluntary Warden, Mike Watson decided to hang up his boots recently having been a wonderful support for just over 22 years. He has been replaced by Steve Matthews who has already been active, working specifically on the local rights of way network in this area. It’s great to have him on board and I know he will do a great job.
It was also a delight to return to the annual community event on Sticklepath Moor at the start of this year and to be involved with the very successful Beating of the Bounds last year. Both show an enormous community spirit which continues to thrive in this village and as ever, it is a real pleasure to be a small part of it.
Ian Brooker.
DNPA Ranger
ibrooker@dartmoor.gov.uk
07720 509273