The Upper Roach Valley and Wallasea Island

(3) Upper Roach Valley

The Upper Roach Valley, including the area around Hockley Woods, is an area with special landscape characteristics. In the Rochford District Replacement Local Plan (2006) the area is designated as a Special Landscape Area and as an Area of Ancient Landscape. These designations arose from survey work carried out by Essex County Council.

There are fourteen ancient woodlands in the District and seven of them lie within the Upper Roach Valley, south of the head of the valley formed by the railway line. The area importance to biodiversity is reflected in the designation of a number of wildlife sites within the Upper Roach Valley.

The Upper Roach Valley is a large 'green lung' bounded by Rayleigh, Hockley, Rochford and Southend. As such, it represents an opportunity to provide informal recreational space accessible to local residents. Parts of the Upper Roach Valley are already well utilised, such as Hockley Woods and the recently established Cherry Orchard Jubilee Country Park.

The need for more informal recreational space in South East Essex has been identified on numerous occasions over a number of years, including in the 1982 and 2001 Structure Plans and the 2005 Thames Gateway South Essex Greengrid Strategy.

We have sought to help address this need through the establishment of Cherry Orchard Jubilee Country Park. Work began on the Country Park in 2002 and the park has been gradually expanded. Our approach to the Country Park is centred on ensuring the right conditions are in place in order for fauna and flora to flourish, and utilising the existing features of the landscape, all with the minimum of human interference.

We are carrying out works to improve access to the Country Park and are currently looking at providing car-parking facilities in a manner that minimises the impact on the landscape.

To the north-west of the Country Park lies Hockley Woods - and to the south-west of Hockley Woods is an area designated as a special and historic landscape area. Currently these areas are not connected, but there is potential to do so to enhance informal recreational opportunities.

Wallasea Island

The RSPB's proposed Wallasea Island Wild Coast Project has potential for tourism and leisure, as well as ecological, benefits. This project is adjacent to the recently realigned coast of Wallasea Island and involves the RSPB working in partnership with the Environment Agency to turn a vast area of arable land into an area comprising a plethora of wildlife habitats comprising 320 ha of mudflats, 160 ha of saltmarsh, 96 ha shallow saline lagoons, 64 ha of brackish grazing marsh and 129 ha of pasture. The project also aims to incorporate improved access into the new landscape which will allow visitors to appreciate the area without adversely affecting wildlife.

At the same time, Essex Marina is located on Wallasea Island and we believe there potential to further develop waterfront recreation on the Crouch through the provision of additional marina facilites in this area.

Opportunities are somewhat constrained by the lack of accessibility to Wallasea Island, in addition to the need to ensure that any increased levels of human activity are not detrimental to ecological and environmental interests, particularly given that the area is part of the Natura 2000 network.