ToughButterCup

That's it, keep him guessing......

Disaster, never mind NOT GOOD. How about rigging a simple sheet of something to form a heat / spark shied between the welder and the tank? You've got me horridly hooked Dave..... Ian

Hello Moira, welcome! And please feel free to PM me with any feedback or comments. They'll be most welcome Ian

Lycra would be a better idea than the Tupperware we are required to use. And yes, you are stirring, but I can handle it. Monitoring frequency? Daily before 11:00. Every day in the season for the duration of the build. So I can forget going on holiday when the temperature is higher than +5 overnight. Useful pressure to crack on with the build. By whom? Me, as trained by the 'ologist. Bit of a laugh that because I've been removing them for 15 years at least. Longer than the 'ologist has been alive. Found one in the dog's feeding bowl this morning, right outside the kitchen door.

Got it in one.

And there's a huge amount of bullying in school staff rooms folks. Just try being a male teacher in an all-female staffed school. Yeah, you can grin all you like.... it's not easy.

A: When it's a T emporary A mphibian F ence And here for your delectation is a set of photos to explain the idea a bit better; Starting from a Newt's eye view this is the trench that has to be dug all the way round your property. Our ecologist sensibly suggested we use our house as part of the TAF - thus reducing the amount of digging to be done and the mini digger came in handy too; Then the stakes have to be put in to support the plastic fencing Occasionally you need to do a little 90 degree turn in the fence.... fiddly and annoying, but fun in the rain So, not all TAFs are Welshmen.... or plumbers for that matter.

In my recent world SENCOs are Special Educational Needs Co-Ordinators. They don't like being taken apart.

How do I find out what that time limit is, please?

Thanks for all the replies, and the good wishes. I am not thinking of this issue in terms of Salamander Cottage winning or losing. I am thinking about fairness and the newts. They don't have any advocates. And while it is more than possible to argue that the law is itself stupid - GCNs are very common round here - the haphazard way in which, on the face of it, the law is being interpreted is symptomatic of sloppy thinking and poor personal and institutional practice. And many round here grumble, but do nowt. I do not begrudge my neighbours anything. I reserve my annoyance for people who are paid to do a good job, but don't. Excellent organisation need cost not a penny more than its lazy, sloppily organised partner.

@MrsRA agrees with you completely. But J's 'Middle way' appeals a good deal too. Sleep on it for a few nights. No rush.

Thanks Terry for the calm analysis. But I feel like taking Declan's advice. However, long ago, I recognised that in business dealings, feelings are dangerous and often irrelevant. @MrsRA will be the final arbiter. She has a highly developed sense of which battles to pick, and I trust her judgement far more than I do my own - except in stacking dishwashers and navigating microlights or cars. Thanks everyone for piling in and helping me work this one through. Time for a walk on the fells and a think.

Cutting through nonsense is always welcome. But, I have a strong feeling that, in the end I will feel bad about myself long term if I don't do something to mark the unfairness. Question is what? What is appropriately subtle, marks the systematic failure of the local planning system, and yet sharp enough to cause the odd intake of breath? And thus initiate change at system level to prevent disregard for simple fairness.

Hmm, Ferdinand. I need to go for a long walk in the rain, get soaked, come back and do a few hours' CSS and JavaScript coding to get myself back into kilter. And then, while in a good mood, decide whether to poke the hornets nest with a sharp stick.

Perhaps at this stage, a little further explanation is required. I do not begrudge our expenditure. I do not feel traduced by the fact that neighbours appear to have 'got-away-with-it'. But I do care deeply about fairness. I spent years of my professional life encouraging professional people to act fairly - and to point out ways in which they could analyse their own practice and analyse whether they were being fair. And how to put it right if they weren't. Now, I have to decide whether I can live with myself if I do nothing - and let unfairness win. It's lonely.

Thanks for introducing me to this the framework. I will think about it.

That's exactly @MrsRA's argument. And exactly why I have made this post. Thank you so much Temp. I really appreciate it.

Why does my build require an EPS Licence, and the other new-builds either side of me don't? The problem is simple. People are building and have built either side of my property. For those three -yes three- properties, the planning process has taken no account of the local population of Great Crested Newts. Yet for my build I have had to have the surveys done, had to apply for the EPS licence, and I'm now in the process of fulfilling its requirements. All four of our properties are exactly the same distance from the ponds containing the newts (Great Crested Newts). What's so special about the other three properties that they aren't subject to the same law? I have tried to remedy the situation politely, quietly, diplomatically. But this week a Planning Department straw broke my back. What that straw is doesn't matter. LPAs have a statutory duty to consult all relevant interested bodies before a decision is made in respect of an application. In the case of the other three planning applications all within 50 meters of my property, no account was taken of the duty to protect GCNs. What have I done about it? I have written to the Head of Planning at the LPA explaining the situation, and giving clear evidence that GCNs are being killed, and pointing out that there is a simple avoidable unfairness in the administration of the four separate applications. Mine was the only on which was required to take account of the EPS issue. I have taken the advice of a local planner (the excellent, sharp-minded Jane - details? PM me). Her advice is to go nuclear because of the simplicity of my case. Before I do, I thought I'd run it past you all. Just as a final check before I take to the keyboard in earnest. I am minded to; Inform the Police that there is an ongoing offence against the Countryside and Wildlife Act See the Local Parish Councillor whose remit is planning See the County Councillor who has responsibility for planning Go and see my MP about it (Cat Smith) Write to our Council's Chief Exec and explain that I have raised the issue with the Head of the LPA, but that he avoided answering my question My instinct was at one time to deal with this at as low a level as possible. But not any more. Advice from any of you to back off a bit will be more likely to be listened to than the opposite. "Well, lad, can't take a joke? - Shouldn't have joined then should ya!" That Parachute Regiment Sergeant's admonition lovingly hissed into my ear during the 1970s is easily transposed to; "Can't take a joke? Shouldn't have applied for Planning Permission should I !

Those videos are a useful bit of CPD for me. The technique of digging - and then placing spoil prior to later loading it - is interesting. I found myself replaying the action bits at quarter speed.

This makes you wonder a bit.

Hmmmm. Serious food for thought here. I can feel a few phone calls coming on and a chat with a couple of local farmers.

Where's JS Harris when you need his brand of indignation to support you ? Phhhhhhh, what use are Welsh plumbers? Jocks are just as bad, and as for Essex boys, they're worse.

Listen, Ferdinand, the eight fingers I have left are working hard enough, what's the odd missing consonant among fiends?

A visit to the NSBRC taught me that I should ask the various Utility companies to come out and mark their services for me - rather than poke around below ground myself and see if there was smoke in these pipes or wet stuff in those. Got the paper work sorted out, got the official map for the water pipes. Asked for Mr Water Utility to pay me a visit, which he promptly did. Me: Hi, I'm keen not to put a digger bucket through your pipes - would you be kind enough to tell me where the water pipe is? Mr Utility: Sorry mate, can't do that. Have you got our official map? Me: Yes, I have: it's a bit vague. But you high-tech Utility people have got things like CAT scanners and stethoscopes and diving rods and all sorts like that. And, the key thing is you know what you are doing. I don't. Mr Utility: Nahhh, we don't do that, 'aven't got a scanner and I gave away my last pair of diving rods the other day (I am not taking the pi55 here) Me: so what are you suggesting then? Mr Utility: Just dig an 'ole son. (I'm an old codger of 63 you know!) Me: But the point of me asking you here today is to get an authoritative opinion on where your water supply runs. What happens if I discover a pipe which isn't a water pipe, and, as a result of the misidentified pipe, I dig through yours? Mr Utility: Ah, well..... Just dig an 'ole..... it'll be reet.... Two days later, I get a receipt from United Utlities thanking me for prompt payment for £50. Deducted from my account. Is my crossness justified?