Ex-Dragon's Den star accuses Peak District authority of persecution in land row

As recently reported, Rachel Elnaugh – best known for her time as an investor on BBC series Dragons’ Den – failed to comply with an order from the national park authority to reinstate the land at Cressbrook Dale to its original state before last month’s deadline.

Ms Elnaugh is the public face of a group who brought the ecologically sensitive woodland in 2022 and began making alterations to the 73-acre site without seeking planning consent for their project to create a gathering place for people to “rediscover the profound art of tribal connections and co-creation in harmony with the Earth.”

While PNDPA has followed procedures in monitoring developments on the site and now moving towards further enforcement action, Ms Elnaugh has argued she does not recognise the authority’s power and that under ‘common law’ the group’s private property rights take precedence over any form of public interest legislation.

As yet, there has been no formal appeal against the planning enforcement case which might escalate it to the attention of national Government, but Ms Elnaugh has decided to pre-empt that possibility with a direct request for support from Michael Gove, Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities.

In a letter sent to the Mr Gove last week, Ms Elnaugh said: “I am writing to complain in the strongest possible terms regarding the unlawful, inappropriate and dispiriting actions of the Peak District National Park ‘Authority’.

“Some of the co-owners made a small number of enhancements to the land, which we believe to be well within our lawful rights as landowners.”

Though she does not detail any evidence, she goes on to allege that the group has been “persecuted” by PDNPA.

Ms Elnaugh adds: “What the Peak District truly needs is visionary, enterprising and inspiring leadership – not an army of clipboard-bearing jobsworths touring the area in their electric vehicles looking for nits to pick, whose only legacy to future generations will be a string of ghastly retail stores and a plethora of 5G masts.”

In her final paragraph, the letter advocates tackling the issue of affordable housing in the area by following examples elsewhere which “offer natural healing and mental/emotional support, together with enterprise initiatives – creating thriving ‘Net Zero’ communities, operating completely in harmony with nature.”

The Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities has been approached for comment on the letter, but it has already drawn a firm response from PDNPA.

A spokesperson said: “The national park authority’s written correspondence to date with the landowner of the location in Cressbrook – as identified on the Land Registry – has been in relation to works undertaken without the necessary planning permission.

“This includes several attempts by the national park authority’s planning service to engage with the landowner at the site, including via a formal Planning Contravention Notice (PCN). The landowners have failed to remove the developments identified and restore the land as required by an enforcement notice that was issued by the Authority in April 2023.

“Before issuing the enforcement notice, the authority had repeatedly informed the landowner that some of the works they had undertaken would require planning permission, however no application has been submitted. The authority also made the landowner aware that such permission was unlikely to be approved due to the sensitive nature of the site, within the national park’s ‘natural zone’.”

They added: “The enforcement notice was not appealed to the Secretary of State, and the national park authority are fully entitled in enforcing action under planning law. The authority to undertake any action in relation to breaches of planning legislation in this instance is a matter of statutory and not common law.

“We will not be commenting on any unsubstantiated claims regarding the authority made by the landowner in correspondence with the media or others.”

Support your Derbyshire Times by becoming a digital subscriber. You will see 70 per cent fewer ads on stories, meaning faster load times and an overall enhanced user experience. Click here to subscribe.