In the warm weeks of March and early April the newts at Wicklesham began to wake up in time for Easter. The picture above shows juniors of several species, including the rare, protected Great Crested Newt.  Newts - as well as prolific numbers of unique fossils- have been associated with Wicklesham Quarry SSSI since time immemorial- as many older residents of Faringdon have been keen to tell me. Wicklesham Quarry was the favourite destination for generations of adventurous Faringdon children.

These are the newts for whom Wicklesham Quarry is not a "suitable" habitat - according to the applicants for a 33,500 sqm commercial/ industrial development, and dubious ecologist, David Broom, whom they employed to write a biodiversity report. Mr Broom's shameful report claims that Wicklesham Quarry has "limited biodiversity conservation interest" and that "as pond basins have remained dry for several years this has rendered the proposed development site unsuitable for the maintenance of a viable breeding Great Crested Newt population". 

Well, Mr Broom, take a look at the non-existent newts! They look VIABLE to us! 

From mid-December to early April large area of Wicklesham quarry have been flooded, making it a perfect refuge for water birds and even a pair of swans. 

The "aquifer-fed naturally fluctuating water bodies" are caused by rising ground water, and are evidence of the 'underground river' or aquifer that flows beneath the quarry, and comes from Galley Hill. It is one of several 'habitats of principal importance' (Priority Habitats) protected under S41 of the Natural Environment and Rural Commuintes Act 2006 (NERC) that are present at Wicklesham Quarry. Others are lowland meadows, ponds, and eutrophic standing waters. 

Other features of Wicklesham's "limited biodiversity conservation interest" that Mr Broom missed include: -

• 18 bird species on DEFRA's RED LIST, and 25 AMBER LIST species, as well as
• 31 S41 Prority Species, including birds, bats, terrestrial mammals, amphibians and reptiles. Among them are lizards, snakes, otters, hares, water vole and 5 S41 species of bats!
• There are 46 recorded species of birds- among which is the curlew, one of the UK's most endangered birds.

You can see the whole list of S41 SPECIES from the Thames Valley Environmental Records Centre (TVERC) report on Wicklesham Quarry* here: https://www.change.org/p/the-vale-of-white-horse-district-council-and-secretary-of-state-michael-gove-protect-wicklesham-quarry-from-development/u/33115970

If you manage to spend some time outdoors this Easter, enjoying the landscape and wildlife that are our greatest irreplaceable asset, could you also spare half an hour to drop a line to Oxfordshire County Council - reminding them of the fantastic importance of Wicklesham Quarry SSSI for BIODIVERSITY AS WELL AS GEOLOGY AND PALAEONTOLOGY, and letting them know they made a HUGE MISTAKE by lifting their objection on the grounds of biodiversity to this horrendous proposal. You could point out the number of Priority Species recorded in the Thames Valley Environmental Records Centre Report on Wicklesham Quarry SSSI - that their Biodiversity Officer forgot to check - and remind them that the 'aquifer-fed fluctuating water bodies' are a S41 Priority Habitat on which many of these species depend.

Cite Reference MW.0151/23 - Wicklesham Quarry and include your name and address. Send your objection to: 

• beccy.micklem@oxfordshire.gov.uk 
• [Redacted]
• mary.hudson@oxfordshire.gov.uk

*To receive TVERC's full report for Wicklesham Quarry SSSI, please get in touch at protectwicklesham@gmail.com and I will email it to you.

IMPORTANT UPDATE -The next possible planning committe date for this application is 16 June 2025. Please pencil it in to your diary so you can come and lend support for Wicklesham Quarry SSSI. In the meantime we shall KEEP ON SUBMITTING OBJECTIONS to documents that the public were not given a chance to comment on. The next one in line is Technical Note 5. 

A very Happy Easter to all Wicklesham Quarry's supporters.