Latest news with #Winnersh
BBC News
01-08-2025
- General
- BBC News
Couple in Winnersh 'angry' as council halts tree removal plans
A woman with a rare degenerative disease has said she is angry a council halted the removal of a tree stopping her from making her home fully and John Garcia hoped to build a ramp and flat space outside their bungalow in Winnersh, Berkshire, to accommodate an electric said they needed to remove an oak tree at the end of their drive, but Wokingham Borough Council halted their plans by making a Tree Protection Order (TPO).The council has declined to comment on the case. The couple said when they initially enquired about removing the tree they were given the green light by the they said work on felling it was halted half-way through and the local authority said it must stay, applying a TPO to what was pair said they challenged the order, but it was refused by the council."It looks ridiculous, there is no public amenity value there," Ms Garcia said. "I can't walk, I've got limited standing, I'm hoisted and I'm cared for 24/7," Ms Garcia said."We have to use a manual ramp, which is shorter than what we need."Ms Garcia said she is forced to travel backwards down the ramp and there have been two occasions when she has "crashed off".She said it had taken some of her independence as she is unable to put the ramp out herself and always needs someone with her when leaving the house. The BBC has seen council emails that state that in May this year officers from the local authority were still trying to confirm whether the tree belonged to Garcia said: "It's very upsetting to be honest."He said they have sent reports and pictures to the council and explained why they needed the tree removed."They're just reluctant to help," he said. You can follow BBC Berkshire on Facebook, X (Twitter), or Instagram.
BBC News
11-07-2025
- General
- BBC News
Highland cows visit Berkshire to boost the ecosystem
A country park has seasonal visitors who are playing an important role in balancing out the Pastures Country Park in Winnersh, Berkshire has highland cows visiting for the season to eat the Cattle help manage grassland by grazing tough plants and creating space for wildflowers and insects to thrive, this supports a rich and balanced Democrat Wokingham Borough Councillor Katrin Harding said the highland cows are "very appealing" and are a "great help to boost biodiversity". Cllr Harding said: "They are very appealing animals with that shaggy red brown fur and those glorious horns coming out from their heads."The cows are only here for the summer to help boost the biodiversity, because these more "primitive" breeds and are less fussy about the flora and fauna they chomp Harding explained that the countryside service have cattle on a number of their meadows across the borough and she said "where possible we do like to use rare breed cattle." There are several reasons why they use different and rare said: "It is important to support rare breeds that don't survive very well in our industrial farming system and also for biodiversity."These rare breeds are more suited to eating those kind of tougher plants, and do better on poor soil conditions. "They prefer these highly biodiverse meadows rather than the new breeds that like lush grass." She urges residents and visitors to keep your distance from these "magnificent creatures" to be safe."They really do just leave you alone, it's the golden rule leave them alone and they will leave you alone," she added. You can follow BBC Berkshire on Facebook, X (Twitter), or Instagram.
