Latest news and information about the campaign to stop a road being built through the Stonehenge World Heritage Site in England. http://www.savestonehenge.org.uk/homepage.html Mon, 24 Mar 2008 http://www.sacredbrigantia.com/ http://www.sacredbrigantia.com/ We're pleased to remind you that it will soon be time to celebrate Beltane at Thornborough Henge once again. Beltane at Thornborough Henge is an informal gathering for anyone who wants to celebrate the beginning of summer and the beauty and magic of the land we live in! It's happening on Sunday 4th May 2008, main Ceremony Starts 1pm. Admission FREE. Everyone Welcome! Find out more on the Sacred Brigantia website. Wed, 5 Mar 2008 http://arts.guardian.co.uk/art/heritage/story/0,,2262215,00.html http://arts.guardian.co.uk/art/heritage/story/0,,2262215,00.html Jonathan Jones rehashes old arguments and covers a lot of old ground in this Guardian article. He commits the very sin he complains about by emphasizing polarized viewpoints instead of common ground. A genuine consensus has been slowly emerging on smaller-scale improvements, but there's no mention of that here. Sat, 23 Feb 2008 http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2008/feb/23/tesco.supermarkets http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2008/feb/23/tesco.supermarkets There are fears that a massive new Tesco distribution centre near Andover could put pressure on the A303 near Stonehenge. Plans like this may, of course, have been driving the now-cancelled road improvements all along... and could put pressure back on for a road upgrade in future. Sun, 30 Dec 2007 http://www.heritageaction.org/?page=heritagealerts_stonehenge http://www.heritageaction.org/?page=heritagealerts_stonehenge Our friends at Heritage Action have updated their Achievable Stonehenge alert page. Take a look and find out how you can help secure the future of Britain's best-known sacred site. Sat, 22 Dec 2007 http://ukpress.google.com/article/ALeqM5htTVuWwu2YD7ywqKlpB0k2l8k9Og http://ukpress.google.com/article/ALeqM5htTVuWwu2YD7ywqKlpB0k2l8k9Og Hundreds of people have gathered to mark the winter solstice at Stonehenge. It's the first time in about a decade that people have been able to celebrate without thinking: "Is this the last time the World Heritage Site will remain intact?" The recently cancelled tunnel/road scheme has threatened major construction in the WHS since 1998. Now that threat has been lifted! Tue, 11 Dec 2007 http://www.foe.co.uk/resource/briefing_notes/stonehenge_may_070.pdf http://www.foe.co.uk/resource/briefing_notes/stonehenge_may_070.pdf Friends of the Earth's South West campaigner Mike Birkin wrote a handy little briefing about the transport issues facing Stonehenge back in May of this year and it's well worth another look. This is what Mike had to say about the way forward: TOWARDS A SOLUTION FOR STONEHENGE Friends of the Earth and partners in the Stonehenge Alliance believe the key principles for future developments at Stonehenge are: * Stonehenge is more important than the A303. The requirements for long term protection and management of the Stonehenge landscape -- that is, the World Heritage Site as a whole -- must take precedence over other considerations. * Nothing irreversible should be done which further damages the physical fabric of the World Heritage Site. This would rule out any above ground road widening within the site boundary. * Transport measures should aim principally to reduce traffic, carbon emissions and other adverse impacts of road transport. We propose the following measures, which may or may not be thought of as "intermediate", to fit in with these principles and improve the setting and experience of Stonehenge: * Closure of the junction of the A303 and A344 and removal of the A344 between this junction and the present visitor centre. This has benefits for the safety of road travellers and removes the road which passes closest to the stones. * Comprehensive speed management on the A303 from Countess Roundabout to the western end of Winterbourne Stoke. * Retention of the visitor centre on its present site. Plans for a new centre at Countess are dependent on major road upgrades and associated with new infrastructure within the World Heritage Site. Removal of the A344 allows much more scope to re-design the present facilities. * A high intensity travel plan for Stonehenge to incentivise and maximise the proportion of visitors arriving by public transport, coach, cycle or on foot. * A corridor travel plan for the A303 as a whole to reduce road traffic and its impacts. Sun, 9 Dec 2007 http://www.savestonehenge.org.uk/alternatives.html http://www.savestonehenge.org.uk/alternatives.html With the tunnel scheme now cancelled, our alternatives page summarizes the problems that remain to be solved and how we could make a start on tackling them. Sat, 8 Dec 2007 http://astore.amazon.com/savestonehenge-20 http://astore.amazon.com/savestonehenge-20 I was asked the same question quite a few times this week: "What is so important about Stonehenge? Just what would have been lost if the road had gone ahead?" Each time I trotted out the old facts and statistics, I got the feeling they were remembered just long enough for someone to write a story... and promptly forgotten again. Hopefully some of the people who read the news stories this week will have been moved to find out more about Stonehenge: Britain's greatest sacred site. If you'd like to read up about the site, our bookstore has links to nine of our favourite Stonehenge books including the classic Stonehenge Complete by Christopher Chippindale, the new(ish) biography of Stonehenge by Tim Darvill, and several volumes by Julian Richards. These are all great places to start learning more about Stonehenge. Fri, 7 Dec 2007 http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm200708/cmhansrd/cm071206/debtext/71206-0003.htm#column_959 http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm200708/cmhansrd/cm071206/debtext/71206-0003.htm#column_959 MPs held a quick debate about the announcement yesterday. There was a striking amount of party politics and hot air from the Tories (predictably) and the Lib-Dems (who pretend to know better, but will always support roads in their own constituencies). None of these politicians apparently care about climate change and the impact of building new roads that increase traffic and CO2 emissions. None of them apparently studied the YouGov poll on 28 November, in which a huge majority of those questioned (2:1) said they wanted public transport improvements rather than roads. (You can find out more about that survey at www.bettertransport.org.uk) Thu, 6 Dec 2007 http://www.savestonehenge.org.uk/stoneh.html http://www.savestonehenge.org.uk/stoneh.html There's been lots of coverage of the decision in the papers with fairly predictable reactions from all sides. As usual, the motoring lobby organizations are claiming to speak up for Stonehenge's best interests--something they do, of course, hold very dear to their heart! We'll be posting more press reactions, statements, and news releases on this page as they appear. Thu, 6 Dec 2007 http://www.savestonehenge.org.uk/ssnr061207.html http://www.savestonehenge.org.uk/ssnr061207.html Yes folks, here's the news we've waited almost 10 years for! The Stonehenge road tunnel scheme is finally scrapped. For now, at least, Stonehenge is "saved". Thu, 29 Nov 2007 http://www.bournemouth.ac.uk/conservation/newsandevents/NewsNov07/news_261107.html http://www.bournemouth.ac.uk/conservation/newsandevents/NewsNov07/news_261107.html Professor Timothy Darvill will be delivering the Christmas Lecture about Stonehenge to the Dorset Natural History and Archaeological Society in Dorchester Museum, High West Street, Dorchester on Friday 7th December 2007. Wine and mince-pies from 6.30pm, lecture at 7.30. Professor Darvill will look at how Stonehenge developed from a humble henge like many others across the British Isles to the unique stone monument whose ruined form we see today. Bluestone rock brought all the way from southwest Wales to Salisbury Plain are what transformed the fortunes of the site; but why were they moved such a distance? And what did they mean to Neolithic people as they watched the sun rolling across the sky year in and year out? Developing some of the ideas presented in his book Stonehenge: the biography of a landscape, Professor Darvill will explore how Stonehenge might have been used and by whom. For bookings and further details telephone: 01305 262735. Sun, 28 Oct 2007 http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm200607/cmhansrd/cm071025/text/71025w0006.htm http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm200607/cmhansrd/cm071025/text/71025w0006.htm More dithering from the government? More procrastination? Salisbury MP Robert Key just asked "the Secretary of State for Transport when she plans to announce her decision on the A303(T) improvement scheme" in parliament. The reply, from Tom Harris: "We are considering the findings of the inter-departmental review of the Stonehenge improvement scheme and alternative options together with the results of more recent traffic surveys and analysis carried out by the Highways Agency. We expect to announce our decision on the A303(T) improvement scheme later in 2007". Sat, 20 Oct 2007 http://www.publications.parliament.uk/ http://www.publications.parliament.uk/ Margaret Hodge has told the House of Commons that there will soon be an announcement about the future of Stonehenge. In a reply to a written parliamentary question by Toby Elwood on 15th October, she said: "The Government are currently considering the findings of the inter-Departmental Review of Options for the A303 Stonehenge Improvement and will make an announcement shortly on the way forward." Fri, 12 Oct 2007 http://www.salisburyjournal.co.uk/search/display.var.1686425.0.minister_promises_to_sort_out_stones_road_problems.phphttp://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/6951371.stm http://www.salisburyjournal.co.uk/search/display.var.1686425.0.minister_promises_to_sort_out_stones_road_problems.php According to the Salisbury Journal (13 September), heritage minister Margaret Hodge has promised to sort things out at Stonehenge. Fri, 17 Aug 2007 http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/6951371.stm http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/6951371.stm A new survey of tourist sites shows people hate visiting Stonehenge, though no more so than the Eiffel Tower. But that doesn't mean we have to go to the opposite extreme and turn Stonehenge into a giant, plastic-coated theme park with motorway access, which is what English Heritage would apparently like us to do. We can provide simple, appropriate visitor facilities, improved access, and a massively improved "visitor experience" simply by removing the A344 road that runs next to the site--and we could start doing that tomorrow. Wed, 8 Aug 2007 http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/factual/nationaltreasures_20070808.shtml http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/factual/nationaltreasures_20070808.shtml An interesting BBC Radio 4 programme called National Treasures asks: "Should we spend GBP500 million on preserving the natural landscape of the Thames Estuary or transforming Stonehenge into a visitor attraction worthy of World Heritage Status?" Listen live at 9:30pm or anytime via the website. Thu, 26 Jul 2007 http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/article2116263.ece http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/article2116263.ece A report in today's Sunday Times suggests that a decision on the Stonehenge plan is imminent and that... the road scheme is to be dropped! Needless to say, English Heritage is playing this up as an alarming thing rather than a victory for common sense. But then English Heritage has been spearheading attempts to destroy a swathe of the World Heritage Site with a massively expanded road since the 1990s. We have no definite confirmation of any decision yet, but we'll post news if and when we hear any. Tue, 1 May 2007 http://www.savestonehenge.org.uk/rescue102.html http://www.savestonehenge.org.uk/rescue102.html Kate Fielden has written another update for RESCUE news updating us on recent happenings. Thu, 29 March 2007 http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/wiltshire/6507963.stm http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/wiltshire/6507963.stm British government minister Ruth Kelly has announced that the proposed new Stonehenge visitor centre can go ahead if the government also approves the contentious road scheme. Naturally, English Heritage is now pushing hard for a decision on the road too.. Fri, 23 March 2007 http://www.savestonehenge.org.uk/rescuespring07.html http://www.savestonehenge.org.uk/rescuespring07.html Meanwhile, Kate Fielden has written another of her occasional updates for RESCUE news updating us on recent happenings.