Whole of Hucknall has embraced yellow ribbon symbol in fight to help save green belt from 3,000 new houses

Yellow is the colour for campaigners fighting to save Hucknall’s green belt land from being lost to housing under Ashfield District Council’s draft local plan.
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Campaigners from the Hucknall Against Whyburn Farm Development Facebook group have been wearing yellow ribbons to show their opposition to the proposals, which include plans for 3,000 new homes on green belt land.

And the town has really embraced the move with yellow ribbons appearing all around Hucknall.

Many people have also been wearing yellow ribbons, including town MP Mark Spencer, who sported one during Prime Minister’s Questions in Parliament.

Campaigners display yellow ribbons next to the poppies at the churchCampaigners display yellow ribbons next to the poppies at the church
Campaigners display yellow ribbons next to the poppies at the church

Mandy Shaw, one of the campaigners behind the yellow ribbons, said: “One of my neighbours spotted one of the council officers tying the maps to the lampposts in Whyburn Lane for the consultation and outlining what was being planned.

"After he’d gone, she went and saw what they were and tied yellow ribbons to them so people would see them and read them.

"And it’s just grown from there, people have tied them to their houses and their gates and it’s become a bit of symbol for us.

"I am surprised to be honest because when Jemma (Jemma Chambers, who founded the Facebook group) started the Facebook group and I started the petition against this, we hoped for 1,500 supporters and we’ve now got more than 3,000 alone signed the online petition.”

Mandy and her colleagues are also putting together a fund-raising calendar showing beautiful photos of Hucknall’s green belt, which she hopes will be on sale from next month.

She continued: “We’ve been sent so many photos for it and the vast majority of them are just stunning, showing just how beautiful the area is.

"We got a couple of local Hucknall residents to help us judge them and we set to and managed to get 13 chosen – one for each month of the year and one for the front.

"I think they look fabulous, all the photos were, we could have made 20 different calendars to be honest.

"People have been so supportive, whether it’s photos, time, money, just doing anything they can to help us try and save the green belt.”