Historic yew felled without permission
A HAMPSHIRE church must apply for the equivalent of retrospective planning permission, Winchester diocese has ruled, after the Vicar approved the felling of a historic yew tree in the churchyard without permission.
Backed by the PCC, the Revd David Snuggs, Vicar of St Thomas’s, Fair Oak, near Eastleigh, ordered that the tree, which was planted when the church was built in 1864, should be chopped down because it represented a threat to children.
Yew trees have toxic berries, and Mr Snuggs is reported as saying that there were concerns, particularly from pre-school groups, that children would eat from the tree, which stood near the church complex. But reports also suggest that many parishioners were unhappy with the decision.
A statement said that the diocese had looked into the circumstances surrounding the felling of the tree. “The opinion is that this requires a confirmatory faculty (which is somewhat akin to retrospective planning permission, where approval is sought for work which has already been done).” The diocesan advisory committee would consider the application from the parish next month, and then make a recommendation to the Chancellor whether or not the faculty should be granted.
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