Our precious Dorset countryside faces greater threats now than ever before with the pace of development accelerating relentlessly. Every year more irreplaceable countryside is being lost or severely damaged and the cumulative effects are potentially devastating.

Standing up for your countryside
CPRE has been standing up for the countryside for over 90 years. In that time, we’ve seen some remarkable successes.

Housing - There is clearly a need to build more houses but national government policy is imposing housing on all our Dorset towns regardless of local needs. We support local communities who wish to have a greater say in where this housing should go, protecting Green Belts and using brownfield sites wherever possible.

Wind and Solar Farms - CPRE is in principle supportive of renewable energy but the government’s drive to boost renewable energy has brought huge threats to our precious landscape. Developers seek to place wind and solar farms in unsuitable locations, where they are visually intrusive and sited on prime agricultural land or within areas of landscape beauty. Subsidy should not be the only driver! Our successes here include stopping the Lower Winterborne Wind Farm in 2004, Blandford Hill Wind Farm 2015 and West Dorset Wind Farm 2015 (withdrawn).                                                                                                                                                                     

Supermarkets - CPRE is keen to promote the production and sale of local foods, and stop the relentless expansion of the major supermarkets. In 2013 we succeeded in stopping Tesco build an unwanted supermarket in Sherborne. Dorset CPRE sponsors the class ‘Best Village Shop’, in the Best Dorset Village Competition originally organised by Dorset Community Action. Corfe Castle Village Stores was awarded best village shop in 2016, Cattistock Stores in 2017 and Duck's Farm Shop, Portesham, in 2018. In 2019, the judges declared Chapel Lane Stores, Abbotsbury and Thorncombe Village Shop joint winners. The Best Dorset Village Competition was cancelled in 2020 and 2021 due to COVID-19 and sadly is in abeyance currently as it needs a new major sponsor. Please do visit these shops and remember all Dorset village shops deserve your support.

Litter - CPRE has been very active in trying to stop the litter that blights our roads, towns and countryside. CPRE launched Stop The Drop in 2008 and since then there have been successful campaigns throughout Dorset. We work closely with Litter Free Dorset. 

Our ambition
A beautiful and thriving countryside that’s valued and enjoyed by everyone.