Dusk is falling over Paradise nature reserve on the banks of the river Cam. Half a dozen bats burst out from their hiding places in the rare wet woodland, dipping and diving merrily through the darkening evening sky.
With impeccable timing, a punt full of tourists on a “bat safari” glides into view. The tiny 2.2 hectare reserve protects the river corridor between Cambridge city centre and Grantchester Meadows and boasts eight species of bat, including the rare and endangered barbastelle, along with voles, herons, kingfishers and otters. Renowned locally for its muddy paths past canopies of mature willow and alder trees, rich marshland and unique riparian habitats, it has been popular with Cambridge students, college dons and the town’s nature-lovers for centuries.
Now a local conservation group, Friends of Paradise Nature Reserve, fears the tranquillity and biodiversity of this local oasis is under threat. One of the Cambridge colleges, Queens’ College, is proposing to build postgraduate student accommodation on a neighbouring lawn it owns at the boundary of the reserve.
The college is appealing against a unanimous decision by the Labour-run city council to reject its proposal – which was initially recommended for planning approval in January – after almost 200 people objected to the development and 2,400 people signed a petition against it.
“We fear that the height, scale and massing of three-storey buildings so close to the boundary would have a harmful impact on both the ecological and amenity value of the reserve,” said Pam Gatrell, chair of Friends of Paradise, which is crowdfunding to raise £30,000 to pay for ecology consultants and legal advice to protect the reserve.
In its planning application, Queens’ College pointed out that as the University of Cambridge is seeking to grow its postgraduate numbers by 1% per annum, there is “very clearly a need for postgraduate housing for Queens’ College”. “Making best use of college-owned sites prevents the need for the college to seek to acquire private housing in the city,” the application states, adding that this would help protect existing private housing provision in the city.
Average rents in Cambridge rose by 12% last year and the average property price is £585,000, according to Rightmove. It is recognised as one of the UK’s most expensive – and unequal – cities to live in, with a near-12-year disparity in life expectancy between people living in the most affluent and deprived areas. Michael Gove recently announced he is sending a “super squad” of planning experts into Cambridge to plan a new urban quarterand “supercharge Europe’s science capital”, adding that constraints on new housing in Cambridge were pricing new graduates out of the market and making it harder to attract and retain talent in the city.
Local Green councillor and Friends of Paradise vice-chair Jean Glasberg said she did not dispute the need for more postgrad accommodation in Cambridge. “It’s just that this [the nature reserve] is such a special place. And that development is so big, and so close to it.”
Queens’ College declined to comment due to the ongoing appeal. But Glasberg denied that the college’s proposal had stirred up age-old tensions between “town” (residents) and “gown” (the university). “Some Queens’ students have been our greatest supporters, they love it here.”
The reserve, she said, offers a vital escape to stressed-out students and the many academics who live in Newnham. “College life can be very intense,” she said. “This is not just about wildlife. It’s also about people.”
Ecologist Olwen Williams has been visiting Paradise, as it is known locally, for 25 years. “From this spot, I have seen a stoat attacking a moorhen’s nest,” she said, looking out over the river as a cloud of pipistrelles danced over her head. “That butterbur [shrub] over there was described by the eminent botanist John Ray in the 17th century as existing in that very spot.”
There are 12 species of fish in the river, including huge pike, and Williams says she will never forget the week a rare black stork visited the reserve to do a spot of fishing.
She is concerned about the impact of construction work on the reserve, as well as the development itself. “It appals me,” she said, taking another look at the tall trees swaying in the breeze and the quiet riverbank shrouded in darkness. “It grieves me greatly.”
