We are a small Wiltshire community Action Group fighting off the drowning of our historic village by development of a series of data centers. We are launching this appeal to raise funds for a Judicial Review – not simply to pay legal expenses, but to make it possible for an important legal challenge to be heard. A Judicial Review provides an opportunity for the courts to examine whether a decision made by a public body was lawful and whether the proper procedures and legal duties were followed.

Westwells Village has been flooded before as a consequence of uncontrolled data center development and poor planning decisions. The most recent planning decision has authorised a sixth data center now into the heart of Westwells/Neston Village from Spring Park Industrial Estate. This approval, by Wiltshire County Council (WCC), was given despite over 1000+ objections and the developer refusing for 2 years to carry out mandated tests and investigations to prove the development would not flood the village again.  A village declared by the government flood authorities at severe risk of surface water flooding and which because the village is so old it has absolutely no surface water drainage.

Neston Westwells Action Group (NWAG) are trying to raise funds to challenge this flawed decision. Previously local residents have supported NWAG to enable us to obtaining advice from a Barrister specialising in planning law. 

                  The Barrister's legal opinion is that WCC have a case to answer. 

If we succeed in pursuing this, then the developer will have to go back and prove that the 5 story massive Industrial build will not flood our village by carrying out the mandated tests and prove the development is safe. The developer has not even completed a survey of the underlying mines.  So before they start clearing a 17 Acre site of all its flowers and fauna that have constantly regenerated despite every developers attempt to scarify the site and poison the ground with Glyphosphate and destroy the Rare bats that forage this land and live in the abandoned stone mines under the field we must act. Sadly the bat numbers along with the trees, have already diminished.  The light pollution coming from the developers Spring Park data Centre Industrial Estate has not helped their survival. 

If the developer is not challenged then this sets the precedent for speculative planning approvals being decided, without full compliance with all the supposedly mandated safety information, which should  prove no public danger before planning approval is granted. The Barrister representing local residents in Westwells considers that the process and decisions applied by WCC were in breach of the law, and have put them on notice that we intend to challenge them in court initially with a stage 1 Judicial Review. To achieve this we need £18,000 to cover the cost of legal representation and court fees.

Every donation you give will represent something much bigger than a financial contribution.It will represent support for the principle that decisions should be open to legal scrutiny. It represents the importance of accountability, fairness and the rule of law. The principle matters to everyone otherwise our democratic rights become eroded.

NWAG do not believe that it is unreasonable to "Prove it Before you Approve it." Otherwise it is our community who pay the price of unlawful decision making whilst the developer gets away with no other consequences, than a bag full of money. We are left with industrial sprawl.

If we do not follow this through, Data Centers as we are already witnessing, might be built next to you without even current planning law being complied with. Please do not make it easier for them to destroy our environment and consume vital resources for example water. For the first time in history our village has a hosepipe ban.  I wonder why?

Every donation represents something much bigger than a financial contribution.It represents support for the principle that all planning decisions should be open to legal scrutiny.It represents a belief that everyone should expect justice and the opportunity to seek it when the system fails. Please stand with us.

                                                                        Thank you!