LCA12A River Swift Valley
Landscape Strategy and Guidelines
River Swift Valley is noted for its intimate scale and winterbourne landscape, which is being threatened by changing patterns in water levels. The overall strategy is to conserve the quiet pastoral seclusion of the River Swift Valley.
Land Management
Landscape Distinctiveness
Avoid visual intrusion from development in the valley
Agriculture
Maintain existing field pattern and pastoral use
Protect area from adverse changes arising from the management of open arable land in the adjoining uplands
Hedgerows
Encourage traditional methods of hedge management
Maintain hedgerow field boundaries
Woodland and Trees
Retain the valley as being generally free of woodland
Biodiversity
Maintain the current pattern of water levels
Conserve, manage and restore unimproved grassland
Historic Landscapes
Conserve remaining catchwork water meadow
Land Use and Development
Built Developments
Discourage expansion or merging of Hurstbourne Tarrant and Ibthorpe
Protect the areas away from settlement from further development
Infrastructure
Protect the area from further noise intrusion from the A343
Seek to avoid introduction of tall features on the adjacent slopes or hill tops that might be visually intrusive
Development to be small in scale and well sited, taking advantage of vegetation cover, to conserve the sense of remoteness and tranquillity