SDC refuses the name 'Haw Park'

SDC refuses to name the new development off Symn Lane 'Haw Park' as resolved by our Town Council.

A hat tip to the hard working local town councillors who must have researched this. Haw Park appears to be an area in the parish dating back the time of Henry VIII but has fallen out of use in recent times.

The new development is located close to Haw Street and will overlook Haw Park Farm in the valley bottom. Haw Park is, therefore, a really good naming choice, directly relevant to the town and its historical links far into the past.

This choice was RESOLVED at Full Council on the June 21st, the minutes being approved on the 28th June.

SDC however, it seems, were less than impressed with the Town's choice. They suggested that it could be interpreted other ways! Really? How did SDC arrive at this conclusion?

Obviously aware that the Town Council decisions cannot be reversed for six months the Chairman granted an extraordinary Town Council meeting at very short notice.

Apparently, at that meeting, on the 28th June, they reversed the resolved decision and voted to change the name to 'Chestnut Drive'. This was sent to SDC for 'approval' on the 30th June.

Critically, however, as far as I have been able to make out, that motion was resolved contrary to the Town Council's Standing Orders which clearly state that motions of this type require six clear days notice.

Personally, I think the Town Council should have stuck to its guns and refused to kowtow to SDC's attempt to airbrush the Town's wonderful heritage. Political correctness gone mad imho.

Anyway, I've forwarded this info to the Monitoring Officer at SDC so that they can check if things over and hopefully revert to the name originally chosen by our democratically elected representatives before they were so unfairly overruled.

e-mail chain with the Town clerk

Update 3/7/21: Since this article was posted on Facebook a few people have asked me how I knew that SDC were the party that objected. I had received an e-mail from an authoritative source:-

Update 21/9/24: Moved to listed.to from the old write.as blog after belated media interest.