Stretton Valley - A49 corridor
This area can justifiably claim to be the heart of the Shropshire Hills, with the Stretton valley containing a major transport corridor and the main town in the National Landscape, Church Stretton. Key themes for future effort are ensuring development is in keeping with the landscape, developing tourism sustainably, and managing the increase in outdoor activities.
The A49 corridor makes this the most accessible but also the least tranquil part of the National Landscape. Church Stretton, the main town within the designated area, has a superb setting among the hills, with the Long Mynd, Caer Caradoc and the Lawley providing some of the most iconic images of the Shropshire Hills. The historic character of the town is enhanced by considerable tree cover.
Tourism is more strongly developed in this part of the National Landscape than elsewhere. Carding Mill Valley is the major visitor honeypot site in the Shropshire Hills, predominantly used by day visitors. It is carefully managed by the National Trust.
Development pressures are the highest here of any part of the Shropshire Hills. Church Stretton has taken its share of new housing and employment development over the years, and the allocation of future sites continues to be contentious. The town links itself strongly with the Shropshire Hills National Landscape and is seeking to make the most of its location and potential for outdoor activities in the development of tourism in a sustainable way.
Growth in road traffic on the A49 is a concern, and is affected by development well outside the area, including in Shrewsbury and Hereford, and in north and south Wales. This corridor does however offer opportunities for sustainable tourism linked to the railway line and good bus services, and for capturing passing trade through farm shops and other facilities.
The need to retain character and limit the negative impacts of change and development is probably more acute here than anywhere else in the Shropshire Hills. Church Stretton is an important service centre but is also the only one of Shropshire’s Core Strategy market towns within a nationally protected landscape. The physical capacity for further development may be more limited, and it is important that the sensitivities of Church Stretton’s location within the National Landscape are fully considered in decisions.
A sustainable tourism approach is vital in this part of the Shropshire Hills and also made more possible by the good transport links, attractiveness for walking and landscape interest in the area. This part of the Shropshire Hills is a key link for visitors from Shrewsbury, Telford and more populated areas to the north and east. The development of a better located Visitor Information Centre in Church Stretton would be a real benefit.
The accessibility of the town enables it to provide services for the benefit of other parts of the Shropshire Hills. Developing further the links between Church Stretton and the National Landscape should allow the town to play a greater role in raising people’s awareness of it and its value, and to develop increasingly as the natural centre or hub of the Shropshire Hills.
