Bat-ting off Green Belt development

Local campaigners highlight Hounslow’s wonderful wildlife amid the threat of Heathrow expansion to historic Green Belt land

This month, Heathrow Airport chief executive Thomas Woldbye announced his ambition for planes to take off from its new third runway within the next 10 years. This follows the Chancellor’s approval of the airport’s expansion plans in January.

Local campaigners fear this will further increase the demand for warehousing on Green Belt land at Hatton Fields. As part of its draft Local Plan, Hounslow Council wants to turn the wildlife-rich site into an Airport Business Park. Despite the fact the airport is surrounded by huge areas – over 80 hectares – of surface car parks which could be built on.

Some success

Friends of Hatton Fields (pictured right), supported by CPRE London’s Ten New Parks Campaign and other local organisations, have successfully reversed some parts of the Local Plan in the past, but there is still work to do. And the group is concerned this latest development will be used to drown out arguments against the move.

“We continue to stand by our objections submitted to the consultation and our vision for Hatton Fields,” says Clare Obeng of the Friends of Hatton Fields. “Meanwhile we continue with our projects to grow awareness and educate local community members in the area.

“We have renovated a local allotment plot and hope to hold education sessions there in the Spring. We released a 2025 calendar including photographs by our members and are planning our bat walks which will start again from May.”

Home to wildlife

And it’s not just bats – Hatton Fields is home to a host of wildlife for local residents to enjoy. Thanks to funding for a habitat survey and training on nature recording, Friends of Hatton Fields can now proudly boast that its Green Belt welcomes butterflies, hedgehogs, kestrels, newts, parakeets, heron, kingfisher, deer, toads and woodpeckers – to name only a few.

We understand that there will be further details around the Local Plan in March 2025 with a public hearing likely to take place late 2025. In the meantime, you can help to protect Hatton Fields from airport expansion for wildlife and local people by signing the Friends Of Hatton Fields’ petition.

Find out more about the Friends of Hatton Fields, here

Learn more about CPRE London’s work to protect the Green Belt and the Ten New Parks campaign