Shooting ground's Olympic plans denied

By Barnaby Dracup

Thursday, 28 April 2011

An East Sussex shooting ground has accused local councillors of not taking it seriously, after its application to build an Olympic skeet and trap shooting facility on the site was refused.

The ground is located in an Area of Outstanding National Beauty (AONB), and Wealden District Council said that the new layout “would fail to meet the primary objective of AONB designation.”

The council also said that additional noise from the new facility “would have an unacceptable impact on the rural and residential amenities of the locality.”

However, Northall Clay Pigeon Club’s Dan Kerwood said: “One action group managed to get a 10-minute reading that said the shoot was noisy, but that’s nonsense. We tested the noise over a three-month period, and got very different results. As regards the AONB status, you’re looking at an 18-acre field that hasn’t been farmed for eight years — the design we proposed would enhance the area.”

The ground is used by Dan’s daughter, Commonwealth Games gold medallist Charlotte Kerwood, who said that the lack of practice facilities in the UK is hampering her preparations for next year’s Olympics.