Threat to our Green Spaces – sign the petition now

Further to our AGM in May, you may have seen email and social media messages from Jason Perry and Chris Philp about the imminent threat to our green spaces and asking you to sign the petition to oppose these plans and protect our Green Belt.

Our green spaces in Sanderstead and well used and loved and volunteers have created Friends Groups to maintain them – The Friends of Purley Beeches, The Friends of Wettern Tree Gardens, Sanderstead Plantation Partners, The Friends of Croham Hurst Woods, The Friends of King’s Wood, and the regular litter pickers at the recreation ground and The Gruffy. Metropolitan Land such as the fields adjacent to Mitchley Hill and Rectory Park are at risk of development again. We do not want to lose any of these green spaces.

This is what CPRE (Council for the Protection of Rural England) are saying:

The London Mayor is consulting on plans to build over Green Belt, though we know that this is unnecessary and will not solve the housing crisis. Metropolitan Land is also under threat without justification.

• Our full response is here: CPRE London comments Towards a New London Plan June 2025
• You can also read our more detailed concerns about lack of focus in the consultation on sports pitches
• Here is our more detailed blog about access to green space in London including a new map of ‘green space per person’
• And we have written more detail on our concerns about the Mayor’s unwarranted comments about golf courses

CPRE London’s key responses to the London Plan consultation

• There should be no building of housing or industrial capacity on London’s protected Green Belt or Metropolitan Open Land, to reflect the critical importance of these green spaces for agriculture, sports and recreation, expanding biodiversity habitat, managing rainwater and more. London’s development can be accommodated within the current urban area. Also, the ‘housing target’ for London of 88,000 per year – over double what is realistically likely to be built based on recent build rates – should be resisted as it will just lead to green fields being released for development, but no increase in the number of houses built.
• Specific Green Belt and MOL (or other green spaces, where appropriate) in London should be identified and designated and/or safeguarded in the Plan for sports and recreation, habitat, food growing and rainwater management; and the Plan should integrate management of ‘green and blue’ to reflect the importance of green spaces to filtering rain water, for clean rivers.
• The proposals to identify areas of London which have very little green space per person are welcomed, however there should be strong policies on protecting and improving access to sports pitches (currently there is no mention) and specifically the London Plan should be underpinned by a London-wide Playing Pitch Strategy – and indeed a Sports Development Strategy with the ambition of London being the number one city for recreational sports in the UK.

If you would like to sign the petition this is the message from Jason Perry with the link:

The damage to our area from Labour’s Planning Committee was dealt a hammer blow when I became Mayor.  One of the first decisions I took was to scrap the Local Design Guide ending Labour’s insensitive planning decisions.  Developers no longer have a free rein to demolish family homes and replace them with inappropriate blocks of flats.   But now there’s a new threat to our area as London Mayor Khan is proposing to release our Green Belt for development.  This includes our much loved green spaces here in Croydon. He won’t name them but without doubt our parks and green spaces are under threat.  And once they’re gone, they’re gone.   Concreting over our green spaces should not be an option.  It’s not necessary.  There are brownfield sites suitable for house building, and we’re meeting our housing targets.   Our green spaces are particularly important for many Croydon residents who don’t have access to a private garden.  They’re vital for our wildlife, for biodiversity, for carbon capture and for our mental health.   Sadiq Khan, backed by Croydon Labour and the Labour Government, want to come for our Green Belt, Reform have also voted to support Labour’s plans.    Help me oppose Labour’s plans and protect our Green Belt by signing my petition here:   Please click here to sign my petition   Please do support our green belt and my petition.  Jason Perry Elected Mayor of Croydon

And the message from Chris Philp:

Dear All, I have continued to work closely and successfully with Mayor Jason Perry to safeguard the character of our area and protect family homes. Local objections to over-development – including mine as our local MP and those of local Residents’ Associations and councillors as well as individual residents – continue to now be listened to under Mayor Perry’s new planning approach in Croydon, and applications to destroy family homes and replace them with blocks of flats are now almost always rejected after proper consideration. But now there’s a new threat to our area as London Mayor Sadiq Khan is proposing to release Croydon’s Green Belt for development, much of which is due to be incorporated into the Surrey Hills National Landscape. He won’t name them but without doubt our parks and green spaces are under threat. And once they’re gone, they’re gone.

I know many residents share my view that, while some new flats are needed (especially for younger people trying to get on the property ladder for the first time) we should not be destroying family homes, which local families need, or changing the character of green suburbs like ours to build them. New flats are better suited to places like Croydon town centre, city centres and brownfield sites.   Concreting over our green spaces should not be an option. It’s not necessary. There are brownfield sites suitable for house building, and we’re meeting our housing targets. Our green spaces are particularly important for many Croydon residents who don’t have access to a private garden. They’re vital for our wildlife, for biodiversity, for carbon capture and for our mental health.

Sadiq Khan, backed by Croydon Labour and the Labour Government, want to come for our Green Belt, Reform have also voted to support Labour’s plans.  I responded formally to the London Plan to register my objection (copy of my response below).

Help me oppose Labour’s plans and protect our Green Belt by signing Mayor Jason Perry’s petition here: HELP SAVE OUR GREEN BELT