A drop of good cheer for the New Year....

Well it's been over a month since my last post, as there was nothing to report. I have to admit that I was beginning to think that we were grinding to a halt. But the posty brought a spark of hope yesterday from Peter Ainsworth MP, Shadow Secretary of State for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs. The letter was personally signed by him rather than from one of his team. I'm taking this as a positive sign that he at least has had site of what we are trying to achieve rather than it just having been processed by the Secretary of States office. Again we find ourselves in a waiting game as obviously the higher up the ladder we go the slower the process becomes. Mr Ainsworth has "forwarded (my) correspondence onto the Rt Hon Hilary Benn MP Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs asking for his comments." and he will write again when he has received a response. So we're not done yet, and I'm looking forward to seeing at where this avenue takes us. In the meantime ...... Merry Christmas (I hope that Santa brings you all the gear that you've been dreaming about!!) and a Most Excellent New Year!!!!

1000 sigs mark exceeded

Just a quick one to celebrate breaking the 1000 signature mark!! Nice one Lee for being the 1000th signature. Score on the door today stands at 1039 roll on 2000 :) . Whoooohooo it is a serious boost! So thanks to all of you who decided this is a cause worth supporting. As for any more news I haven't heard from the Opposition equivalents as yet. I have written to my local opposition candidate to see if they can give it a nudge, so we'll see.

Other avenues.....

Apologies for not posting sooner, I've spent most of this week fighting viruses. Such creative individuals who create these things :o(. Anyway, thought I should let you know what I've been doing. Obviously I have written back to Phil Hope letting him know what I thought. I have yet to hear from his office. I wrote to the Shadow Secretaries for CMS and DEFRA but no response from them. I guess the Queens speech etc has had them all a bit tied up so we're waiting again. When I catch up I'll start looking for other options to tackle the issue. Apparently the EU are revising the framework regulations to give countries more flexibility. I feel a whole heap of reading coming on!! As far as the amount of kiters on the door of No10 stands, we stand at 990 ohh so close to that 1000 mark so keep it going, it's a great effort!! We've inched into the top 2.5% of most supported petitions. We're getting there!! Thanks to all ...and enjoy the return of the Wind!!

One word...Bogus.....

Sorry, I have had the letter now for a few days now, and been wondering how to proceed.......and also to calm down a little. The letter from the Interim Chief Executive's offer, changes the RPA's position on the rational about our Category B classification, not because we are a motor sport, not because we are likely to cause damage in the pursuit of the activity but because the land is "likely" to require "preparation" that would be inconsistent with normal farming activities. In my head I am screaming "B******T, have you not read your own regulations!!". Preparation of the kind described in the letter, under the regulations would require a change of use permission and at most a planning permission permit. All that is required is that the land be able to be able returned to Agricultural purposes within 14 days. Are they suggesting it take 2 weeks for a group of kiters to pack up and push off because a farmer wants to plough his field!?!?! Are they also suggesting that preparation by a heard of sheep to be against their regulations ......really this is Barrow boy ducking and diving at its worst. This has got to be costing them more than writing our sport in the list and posting it in the next issue. The RPA's approach to this is Bovine in the extreme. None the less ....now I have calmed down....I have replied courteously and professionally to Mr Cooper, directly and not to his MP, contesting this new position so we will see what new position they will adopt next. I last wrote to him in August so on that guide we will wait to hear from him in the New Year. It is becoming increasingly important that we get the numbers up on the campaign, this change of position for the third time proves that we are on the right track and that we shouldn't give up. So get out there and pass the link to the petition to anyone you know with any kind of access to the Internet. Oh and if anyone knows a Lawyer who will do Pro Bono work of this kind, pass on the link to this blog, any and all help will be greatly appreciated. For those of who have pledged evidence letters about the impact of the sport on the land, we may yet need them, so please keep them in mind.

Lost in the Mail......

I thought I'd give them the benefit of the doubt as they had finally said they were going to send me something. I have yet to receive anything from them, despite being told that the letter went in the post on the 15/10. I called up today to try and track it down, they had told me the delay was down to the posties being on strike, and another very helpful lass looked into it for me. Initially I was told that the letter had gone out on the 18/10 but that she would confirm. The helpful lass has since called me back and told me the letter went out on 17/10 but was sent to Phil Hope my MP rather than me. A very strange way of doing business, I would have thought that it was legally incorrect to respond to a correspondent by sending the reply to an unnamed party?!? Anyway they are going to send a copy to my address. I will now have to follow up with Phil Hope's office, to get the letter forwarded. Very Weird..the truth is out there..anyway will keep you posted. Scores on the door is 924 that 1000 sig horizon is getting closer, thanks to all of you who have taken the time and effort to support the cause. Keep talking, and signing....

The pools are clearing.....

We seem to have penetrated the darkness, I spoke to a really helpful lass who after 35 minutes heroically managed to get through to the customer champions but also managed to track down a progress update!! So full marks and much appreciation to her. A response has been drafted and should have been posted yesterday. With a bit of luck and the right wind I should have it this week. Really don't know what to expect but everything is crossed for a positive result. On a down note it, seems that yet another restriction has been placed on powerkiting, at West Wittering, I've placed a link to the SEKA forum where the statement is posted, in the side bar for kiting issues. There is also some further chat about this on other threads. Which increases the pressure even more on the success of campaigns like the this and others, to succeed. I'll post the RPA's response as soon as I get it. I hope the people dealing with it weren't the ones recommending we give up Fresh milk for UHT. Score on the Door has passed 900 thanks to all of you for keeping the faith. Only 97 more and we'll be passed a 1000 which will be 25% of our initial target. Keep signing, posting and talking :o)

Murky pools of bureaucracy...

The government have seen fit to reduce the amount of land a farmer is allowed to set aside next year, because the Grain mountains are now depleted. As I understand it the ability to provide a "set aside" allowance has not been removed from the regulations. So don't think that this campaign has lost its following wind. There are other elements that this campaign impacts. The classifications also impact on land classified as "permanent Pasture" it also has the benefit of getting us "written into" the regulations as a body that should be taken into account for future regulations. I have already ranted about my feelings about our "listening" government on other forums so I won't repeat myself. Rest assured that I am continuing to fight the fight. I am giving our local MP the benefit of the doubt about the fact that he has not responded to my last communication. Firstly as secretary to the cabinet office he was probably planning to fight the election that never was, and now he has to catch up there is a Postal Strike. I guess whilst we wait for the election things will grind even slower, as no one will want to make a decision until they know who will be in power and what the policy will be, so I am preparing for a period of stagnation. So much for a happy and improved society. I am hoping Phil Hope's usually efficient office will catch up in the weeks to come. The lass at the RPA who is following up on the Customer Champions, isn't due back from her Hols until tomorrow. So all I have to say is we're just 5 short of 900 sigs on no10's door, but unfortunately we've slipped back down the rankings, so get onto facebook, get out your address book, poke everyone you can for a sig, there's still a long way to go.

On the shelf.......

I think the rephrasing of the word "parked" is you've been put on the shelf. And so young to!! Well the lass at RPA has gone a well deserved break this week and no one else wants to get involved so I am always deferred to the lass. So no progress on that front. I have decided that the time is coming to up the stakes, before there is an election and everything grinds to a halt and we have to start all over again on the MP front. We have been promised a response from Tony Cooper the Chief Executive of DEFRA, but as yet that was made a while ago, so I am pursuing this week point to see if we can't make some progress. The score one the door of No 10 is 868, we're gradually inching towards the 1000 mark so dig deep in the address books and see if we can't get passed that mark and into the top 200.

Gone to ground......

It seems as though the "Customer Champions" department are taking a leaf from Batman's book and have gone to ground in the Champ-Cave!! Unfortunately the lady who has the key to Champ-mail has had to call in the repair team as it appears to have been foiled by the Joker!! Sorry....my poor sense of humor. It appears that once a query has reached these dizzy heights normal service ceases and no one can track what's happening. So I am still waiting for a call back from the Lass at the call centre. I tried to get hold of her again today but she's engaged and another email has gone to her requesting a call back......hummm. So I'm afraid the waiting game persists, no news is good news!! On the subject of the hunt for statements about the impact of the sport on grass, I have to put a huge THANKS out to Mell at the BPKA, Justin at the Essex Powerkite Park and Al from Powerkiters who have all pledged their time to send in a statement. These will prove to be invaluable, if the response is as we would like. Forewarned is Forearmed!! Growth continues to be steady with the petition we're now at 850 sigs and ranked 217, still respectable but there is still a way to go yet. Oh yes and another case of spin arrived (thanks to rarelymarty on racekites) in the Times of all papers about councils and response to signatures (http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/politics/article2484959.ece) definitely don't believe all you read in the papers, especially the bit about Downing street responding to petitions over 200 on their website.....All I can see is there has to be over 60,000!! We've a bit to get yet :0) Keep signing, poking and chivvying...Thanks to all.

Customer Champions......

For the first time I didn't get a call back from the RPA, I have to say I was surprised. I made a couple of chase up calls today and spoke to the lass that I last spoke to. It seems that we have managed to unearth another department in the RPA the "Customer Champions" unit. Apparently following the last letter, and the subsequent appeal, you get escalated to it. The lass on the line didn't really know much about the department, but read out what info she had about them apparently they have been established to ensure "consistency in decision making and policy making within the RPA." Which all sounds very positive, but they don't seem to like to respond to emails, so the lass said she will call me back when she hears from them. At present I have decided that holding my breath wouldn't be in my best interests.....some of you may beg differ of course :0b The petition is making slow but steady progress with the score on no10's door being a honourable 833, with a healthy standing of 225 in the rankings. Autumns coming the beaches are clearing and the winds picking up ..... its all good!!!

Here we go again......

Back from some time in the Sun, and back on the case. I have followed up my response to the last letter from the RPA, requesting the basis for their decision; and surprise surprise, no one can tell me who is dealing with it. So I am again waiting for the call centre to call me back. The holiday was great, but I took a kite and wasn't able to fly, but it served to remind how lucky we are in the UK to have the terrain and space to pursue our sport, rather than having to travel to a beach, just a nightmare that the bureaucrats don't want to think outside of the box to help everyone enjoy the country. Reinvigorated, there are some new leads, (thanks for those suggestions) that need following so I'll get on with that rather than descending into my alter ego the kiting grouch!!! Scores ont he door now 809 and we're up to position 230 so progress is still being made. Thanks to all as ever....

No one said it would be easy......

I have today recieved a response from the RPA. It is I am afraid a rather perfunctory repetition of their initial position. I have to admit to being a little depressed by the predictability of the faceless civil 'servant', and the fact that term is proving to be a contradicition in terms. There is some hope in that they did not mention the link with motorsports and that the position has shifted to the rational that the sport is "likely to cause damage", and therefore the classification remains the same. This on its own is not a reason to restrict an activity in it's own right. The framework only restricts an activity if it would prevent a farmer from keeping the land in Good Agricultural and Environmental Condition. I have responding and requested that they provide the detailed reasoning behind the decision to restrict the activity in this way. I have also written to written to Phil Hope MP who has in turn again written to The secretary of State for Culture media and Sport for a response. Please show your support and sign the petition for your fellow kiters, the demonstration of opinion will be invaluable.

On a promise..and a letter from Europe

I was quite hopeful this week when I called up to find out what the score was with our query. I have to admit to getting a tad grumpy when the helpful chap came back and said that "a manager" at Exeter says it shouldn't be with them and that I should call the help desk at Reading!!! Poor sod, I really do feel for these people who have to face the frustration of customers that are let down by "the ones that do not speak". I have to say that he pulled it back, he took my number and promised to find out from Reading who will be dealing with the request and also by when it will be dealt with. So I hung up confident at least that I would at least get a call back. So at 1615 I get a call back, with the poor chap saying that there's no good news as the person he needed to talk to had left the building for the day. He assured me a call back the next morning. Anyway the next day he calls me back, very cheerily saying that the it is policy that "the ones that do not speak" do not speak!! But I have been "promised" that by Wednesday I'll receive a letter from a "Senior Manager". I am excited and a little fearful of what that letter may contain, I am not full of confidence that it will be dealt with the appropriate care and attention, but there is always hope. Anyway we will see. I'll post what has been said when we receive the letter.

Posty's just been and a letter has arrived from Glenis Willmott (MEP). The letter contained a response to her letter from Mariann Fisher Boel (European Commissioner responsible for Agriculture & Rural Development). The key element is that the activity has to fall within the framework of the legislation and I quote...

"....this framework does not prevent the kind of activity described by your constituent.

I would therefore suggest that your constituent obtains the necessary clarifications from the British Authorities."

.....this is a bit of a coupe!! I have been advised to go back to my local MP to pursue it further. Interesting aside though, I wrote to EU after I wrote to the UK and I have yet to hear from the head of State for Culture Media and Sport.

I hope that I will have a few more signatures on the petition to demonstrate the sporting communities strength of feeling. Currently the score on the door is 727 and we're 270th in line. The trend figure this week (11) fell below 40 signatures for last week, but forum views remain constant.

Summer Hols must be here....

The summer hols must be here, not that I can tell from the weather, but things in general seem to be on a go slow. My follow up call to the RPA was enlightening rather than progressive this week. As always the people on the line are very helpful and pleasant, the people in the back office seem to be reluctant to support their front line colleagues. Isn't that always the way with call centres. But that's another campaign!!! I did find out that our request as we said last week is sat at Exeter which is where the Scheme's Management Unit is. So I guess we are slowly moving up the decision tree, awaiting to be allocated. I guess there will be more delays whilst they decide on the initial party line. It took them 4 months to let me know their current position so I guess a little over three is par for the course. Talking of moving up the ladder the petition continues to grow, but slowly as everyone is out kiting in sunnier clime's! I know I'll be off soon, wahoooooooo! Usually we jump at least one rung every day, but today was the first day of rest at position 279 and this despite a load of petitions ending. Currently there are 695 signatures on the door. We started off needing a daily signature rate of 10.4 to achieve our 4K target but this is starting to slip with us now requiring 11.2. Things will pick up hopefully as the Autumn winds blow in. Have a good week, and keep nagging people to make their mark. As always thanks to all those that have signed and contributed.

Back on the right track.......

This week has been relatively uneventful, but the RPA tell me that we have been rescanned and are now in Exeter for task allocation. So we have now been to Cumbria, Newcastle, North Allerton and now we're in Exeter. The wonders of ethernet travel ;o). The upside of this is that I've been able to get out in the glorious sunshine and get some kiting done....it had seem an age since I was able to get out....roll on summer!!! (There is always hope!!)

Thanks this week go to the Kite Society of Great Britain who have featured the campaign in their All New 'News' page (http://www.thekitesociety.org.uk/news.htm) on their website. It's a real boost for another National to sign up as a campaign backer, thanks once again.

Oh yes score on the door for the petition is 656 and we're in the top 300 standing at 292. We're surrounded by serious petitions now, please keep signing......

Lets see what happens this week.........

The Shaggy dog story continues.....

Well the shaggy dog story goes on at the RPA, yes its a bit of slow news week..... The RPA have this fancy paperless system where inbound letters are scanned and then allocated as tasks to various handlers. So this I call the call centre and speak to this bloke, the bloke looks up the case and tells me again that my document has been scanned but is not sure why it has not been allocated. I say well its been 15 days, he says hummmm it has hasn't it. All of the peeps at the call centre are very helpful and unlike any other call centre I have come across when they say they'll call you back they actually do, in the time they said they would. I say well let us have the number of the person concerned and I'll call them, sorry says the bloke I'm not allowed to do that, I know says the bloke helpfully, if you don't mind holding I'll call the person. OK I say. Sorry the bloke says, the person is on lunch, but I'll try again later and email them to get in touch, and confirms my number. Thank you I say and Hang up, thinking I'll follow up in a couple of days. Two hours later this phone rings and its a lass from the RPA who is in charge of the scanning, who very helpfully and honestly informs me that the no matter what I've been told so far, that the letter was scanned incorrectly and allocated as a "Supporting document". Hummmm I say that's OK just change the classification and we can move on. Sorry says the lass, the document will need to be rescanned......OK I say, how long will that take, a few days she says, but I'll forward your note to the person that its likely to be allocated letting her know the situation, and they should be in touch soon. Thank I say for being so open and honest and i look forward to hearing from you......(to be continued)....

Thanks this week go to SEKA (South East Kiting Association) who have volunteered to fly the supporting banner on their website and include a piece in their newsletter, so we're looking forward to reading that. There were an extra 37 signatures added this week, thank you all. The score on the door of No10 is currently 629 and we're almost in the top 300 most popular petitions. I have noticed that petitions with over 60000 signatures get a comment from No10....we've a way to go, we know you're out there so keep talking and signing.

A landmark week....

Another soggy summer week, all of this seems unimportant when there are farmers who have lost livestock and crops in the floods, and there a families who are homeless. Our best wishes for a speedy recovery go out to those who are suffering in the floods.

As far as the campaign goes, the last week has seen some great progress. Phil Hope MP has continued to impress us with the speed of his offices response and strong support. We received a copy of the letter that has gone to the Minister of State for Culture Media and Sport, last Wednesday. We are eagerley awaiting the Minister of State's response. We had a response from Glenis Willmott's (MEP East Midlands) office on Friday, informing us that a letter has been sent to the European Commissioner supporting our position. Again we look forward to reading the response to that letter. Powerkite Mag wrote us up in the latest issue with an excellant piece, for which we are extremely thankful. The BPKA have said they are happy to support our campaign in whatever way they can, it's good to have the backing of a Sporting Association. The Heroic action of the week came from Al at Atmosphere Kite who sent out and Email to his 400 strong address book, which produced an almost record equalling responce for daily website views and increase in signatures. Thank you again for such a strong vote of confidence and support for the cause. Ainsdale on sea Powerkite club have taken up the cause and in an impressive show of cross sport unity so have the Avon Kite Flyers with a write up in their next newsletter. The blog got some comments!! Great stuff, thank you and wise words also...so just click on the comments at the bottom and have your say, you don't need register.

The score on No 10's door is just shy of 600 votes and we are one place below a petition to legalise same sex marriages, which is due to end in Spetember 2007. I take this as positive indication that kiters are passionate about their sport and are willing to stand up and back it. So thanks to all, we still have a long way to go so keep talking, suggesting and signing.

Parliamentary Support.......

I have to admit to being impressed, I sent an email to my local MP (Phil Hope) a week ago today and was expecting to still be twiddling my thumbs waiting for a response, but no I got a letter back on Saturday. The response was incredibly encouraging as he offered to write on the campaigns behalf to the Department of Culture Media and Sport (DCMS) to push for their support. I have of course snapped his arm off!! There were also some other leads worth following, so the emails have gone out this morning.

I am surprised that no one has commented on my posts as yet, there are some strong opinions on the forums. Please feel free to click on "Comments" and let me know what you're thinking....as always all thoughts suggestions or ideas are gratefully received.

The numbers on the petition continue to grow congratulations to Lewis Reeves signature 500....sorry you don't win anything, but hopefully you and the other 517 will have helped to Free the Fields for powerkiters current and future!

Thanks again to all .........Keep talking and signing!!

Back to it....

Well I've been away for a week, the weather wasn't much better there.

I was hoping to have had a response to the letter that was sent to DEFRA, in early June. Unfortunately there wasn't one. I have called them and found that the person I needed ( was a nice bloke) but had not been the right bloke for 18 months and that the letter had been forwarded to another bloke. That bloke was on holiday, but spoke to that bloke's colleague (also a good and helpful fella) who tells me that the letter has been forwarded onto another department the other side of the country, but he can't tell me the name of the person who will be dealing with it. I am currently waiting for the results of his digging.....watch this space. :0) we'll get there.......the helpful fella called me back to say that I will hear in a couple of weeks.

I'm glad to see that support keeps building almost 500 signatures. Its been really positive to see support coming in from clubs, shops and brands. As you can see I've added their banner links of those who have posted our banner with a link on their site, in the sidebar. Flexifoil have added an article in the news section of their website, The Highwaymen have added a whole page for the campaign, any and all supporting links are a major bonus so please feel free to help spread the word. Take a banner from the sidebar and add it to your site, and do a test click through. I will see the link on the activity report and add a reciprocal link and let you know, with much thanks.

I've also added some tunes for your listening pleasure whilst you're reading, just click on the Finetune Player, in the sidebox.

An Interesting week......

It's been an interesting week of discovery this week, I hadn't realised that there was quite so much going on in our community. The petition has grown to 408 signatures as of this morning, but more significantly has been the addition of kite establishment signatures. This is heartening for me to see if at least in principle there is agreement that this change is needed. We have been added to more forums, and these are listed on the right. I am surprised that we need 10 views of the discussion to get one signature, any advice as to how I can improve this ratio will be greatly appreciated.

Thank-you again to all of you that have sent in advice, opinion, messages of support and encouragement, to those that have forwarded the emails, posted banners on their site, as well as started and bumped threads to encourage conversation. We’ve got a long way to go and these spur me on.

On a downer though, there is rightly great concern out there about those among us whose irresponsible and ignorant actions cause angst and frustration amongst our fraternity let alone with the non-kite flying public. What will it take for them to realize they are only trashing their prospects as well as for everyone else? I wonder also how large the problem of uninsured power kiters there are out there? In the long run I would hope that the changes we are working towards will ease the congestion on the limited number of flying sites, making kiting groups smaller and help manage the situation through peer pressure.

Please feel free to add your comments to the blog, you don’t have to register.

Hmmm ......soapbox moment......have just been checking the forum's for progress and commentary, and seen that Camber Sands may be coming under threat of further restrictions. For further info read the SEKA thread on the side of the page.

At some point we have stand up and say HELLO we're here too. There are precious few suitable spots around this small country that are free for us to use for onereason or another. We all grumble and mutter about over crowding, each other and the bans. Why can't we (kiter's of all denominations) all come together to represent ourselves. Surely we would all pay a slightly increased fee to our choice of associations to fund cross sport representative negotiating team to support those in need, rather than relying on passionate committed local volunteers who have to start from scratch??? Better get off before I slip off!!

The Signature rate has slowed on the petition. But we have reached 329 signatures so we're in the top 500 most signed petitions. Its great but not good enough so I think it's time to broaden the net. Contact with Defra will be being made soon. From my experience they have always been extremley helpful. There are somethings though that may be more difficult......we'll see.

So it begins...

Well that's it the ball has started rolling, a petition has been setup on No 10 downing street's website. It would be an awesome achievement if the community can come together and we can amass over 4000 signatures.

I was on a course recently and discovered that to be a recognised sport, entitled to funding etc we would need a governing body with over 4000 registered participants. This campaign will never be that and does not seek to represent the sport in that way, but as a number it is significant for the purposes of persuasion.

I posted the petition and its details on some Kiting forums and in the first week we have amassed over 280 signatures in one week. I have been really impressed by the support and lack of apathy in the community and can only thank those that have added links, sent the link on to their address books and most importantly signed the petition. As a new minority sport it is essential for us to stand and work together in however small a way to secure our continued enjoyment of our shared passion. THANKS TO ALL. :o)

I've set up this blogspot to save time as updating all the forums daily was taking a long time. On here I'll post the additional steps that have been taken to progress the campaign.

A bit of History

I first became aware of this problem, in 2005, when after months of driving past a field I found out which farmer the field belonged to and got in touch. I have to say all the farmers I spoke to in this was very helpful and friendly. As I told the farmer more about what we wanted to do he was very positive about working with us and then came the BUT.

The new subsidy regulations were coming into force and he didn't want to loose his subsidy. I have some experience with legaleese so set about reading up on the reg's and found that as a sport we fell through a gap in the guidelines. I wrote to the rural payments authority (RPA) with a description of the sport complete with pictures. As the changes were coming in the answer took several months of follow up but finaly got a response. The answer I got back was that we were classified as a "Motorsport". At that point I dropped it, and started looking for another suitable site.

For the last 18 months I have been working with a local aerodrome, who have been extraordinarilly open minded, to allow kites in a corner of their field and we are currently waiting for the right conditions for our first flight (Sywell Kite Club). The issue has been niggling at the back of my mind for almost 2 years and now I've decided to stop burbling into my beer and try to do something about it.........hence this campaign.

The First Week.

The campaign begun by putting it out there. A petition was set up on No10's website Kiters if they aren't doing it, they're talking about it so the issues was posted on some of the forums that are out there and we received and outstanding response. 280 votes in the first week, which was amazing but to us demonstrates the size of the issue that we are facing.