The Dartington Land Use Review

The creation of a vision for the future of Dartington’s farmland is nearing completion. As previously reported, the estate’s tenant farmer retires in 2014, and a review was launched to explore how the land could be used in the future. The local community, neighbouring estates and experts have been consulted, and recommendations went to Dartington’s trustees in December 2011. John Channon, who has been leading the Land Use Review project, sets out the story so far.

This is a once-in-a-generation opportunity to look again at how we use our land. We recognise that there is a disconnection between our current land use and what Dartington is about: the arts, social justice and sustainability. The Elmhirsts said that the estate was to be a place of experiment, education and sustainable enterprise. We are trying to get back to these first principles.

The Land Use Review started in 2010 by mapping what land we currently have and what we do with it. We then moved on to exploring new ideas in the context of such external drivers as climate change, concerns about biodiversity and increases in energy and fertiliser costs. We’ve visited estates in other parts of the country, run seminars on agro-forestry and community land partnerships and have explored issues ranging from organic farming, to zero-carbon land use. We have investigated running the farm more as an educational and research resource and replacing a single tenancy with a greater diversity of enterprises which create jobs and value-added products which can be sold through the trust’s restaurants and shops.

In January 2011 we held an Open Space brainstorm with Transition Town Totnes and our neighbouring communities. Many of the ideas that emerged, reflected our own thinking and several were incorporated into the final Land Use Review report. An abridged version of this report was presented to Dartington’s trustees last December and work is now underway to produce a full version which can be loaded onto the website and will contain a substantial amount of information, ranging from a detailed explanation of the individual proposals to a record of the ‘evidence’ that has been gathered. It is envisaged that this version of the report should be available by the end of February 2012

Land Use Review Community Conversation

Our Community Conversation held in October 2011 focused on an update of the proposed community projects within the Land Use Review and proposals for public access to the estate. John Channon, who heads up the Land Use Review for Dartington Hall, spoke to those present about the LUR prior to the final report which was presented to the Dartington Hall Trustees in December 2011. The evening which was attended by over 70 people was a great success, with many good ideas generated and useful comments made by the community. Click here for Q&As from the event and Click here for the proposed plans.

If you have any comments to add, feedback or suggestions please contact John Channon, Land Use Manager – John.Channon@dartington.org