Beautiful views of South Downs countryside are restored after community effort

Beautiful views of South Downs countryside are restored after community effort

April 6, 2022

A picturesque view of the National Park has been restored thanks to the undergrounding of electricity infrastructure.

The £150,000 programme of works by Scottish and Southern Electricity Networks (SSEN), which started in late summer of last year, has been completed and restores an historic view from the medieval Hampshire market town of Bishop’s Waltham (before view below).

The site had been proposed by local stakeholders as having the potential for visual improvement through the removal of the overhead network.

The project – carried out across land on the Franklin, Dean and St Clair’s Farms – has removed a one-kilometre section of overhead cables and supporting poles, replacing them with modern, robust underground cabling and providing the many people who use the local footpaths with an uninterrupted view across the local countryside.

Kim Wilkie, from Franklin Farm, said: “SSEN has made a big difference to the landscape and bridleways at this entrance to the National Park. The poles and lines have all gone and the trees are now allowed to grow uninterrupted.”

Veronica Craddock, who leads landscape and green infrastructure for the National Park, said: “This valuable work by SSEN has restored the breathtaking views across this part of the South Downs National Park. Many people will now be able to enjoy the uninterrupted landscape from footpaths and bridleways, whilst our wildlife will enjoy the new areas of tree growth which were previously trimmed under the overhead lines. It’s fantastic that SSEN have completed this project and the Authority is very grateful for all work that is undertaken to protect the natural beauty of the National Park.”

Help SSEN find new areas of the National Park where undergrounding overhead lines could improve the landscape for both people and nature by nominating them using this online form.