The proposal by Bellway Homes to take over a strip of land adjacent to the River Walk potentially threatens the River Walk.

It is difficult to see how the piece of land they are seeking to acquire from Braintree District Council will provide access to the ‘Gimsons’ area they wish to develop, as it stops short of Gimsons.

The River Walk is leased from the District Council by the Witham Town Council, and Braintree didn’t bother to notify the Town Council of the potential sale of the strip of land.

So are Bellway hoping to access the land after the lease ends? Well, that is years away so they are going to have a long wait - or is something else going on?

The key issue is that the River Walk is Witham’s ‘jewel in the crown’ and Essex Wildlife Trust have confirmed that Witham is the only town in Essex to have a riverside area managed as countryside and an important natural environment, running through the centre of the town from one side to the other.

Therefore, it always need protecting and parts of it must not be sacrificed for the convenience of devel - opers.

By Barry Fleet of The Avenue, Witham.