CONFERENCE OF DELEGATES. 681 



establishing a Regional Planning Committee for the wijolo county, had many advan- 

 tages so far as the Lake District was concerned. It l)rought in to the aid of the lower 

 rated Lake District the comparatively highly rated towns and industrial regions of 

 the county, and it ensured that the regional plan should be on broad and far-reaching 

 lines, linking up the Lake District with the adjoining sea-coast, the mining region 

 bordering it, and the border region of Carlisle and the northern part of the county, 

 including a long and important section of the Roman wall. The present proposal was 

 that there must be one Regional Planning Committee for the whole of the county, 

 and that that Committee, since it derived its authority and its financial backing from 

 every parish in the county, must formulate a regional planning scheme for every part 

 of the county. Regional Planning and Town Planning were as necessary as sound 

 development, healthy living, and economical administration in an industrial or 

 agricultural district, as they are in a wild uncultivated region such as the Lake District. 

 The principal objects of the plan might, however, be slightly different. In a growing 

 mining and industrial community the main object would be the development of the 

 natural resources with as little damage to the amenities of the district as possible, 

 and proper regard for the health and well-being of the workers. In a rural district 

 the aim would be to aid in securing the well-being of the farming community. The 

 Cumberland County Regional Planning Committee, when it was finally constituted, 

 might find it necessary, for the purposes of convenient working, to sub-divide its very 

 extensive region of 973,08(5 acres — over 1,500 square miles, and, with the exception 

 of the Greater London Area, considerably the largest regional planning area in the 

 country. Even that did not take into accoimt a considerable area of Westmorland 

 which, it was suggested, should be associated with the Cumberland scheme. That 

 procedure was followed in the case of the Manchester Regional Planning Scheme, with 

 conspicuous success. As the Lake District presented special problems, it was reason- 

 able to presume that the County Regional Planning Committee would treat it as one 

 of the sub-districts under its control and refer it to an area committee for detailed 

 planning. 



A scientific method of dealing with a region must be comprehensive, logical, 

 complete, economical. It must be based upon a systematic survey of the region, its 

 structure, history and resources. In the case of the Lake District it must recognise 

 the exceptional character of the region as one of national concern, and must strive to 

 accommodate both national and local claims and rights in the matter of control and 

 responsibility. It must also accommodate the conflicting demands for improved 

 accessibility and preserving its solitude and wild life. 



A Regional Planning Scheme, followed by a Town Planning Scheme, would meet 

 all these requirements. It represented mankind's concerted efforts to utilise the 

 resources of a region to their best purpose, and, in the most economical manner, to 

 render its benefits and material and spiritual riches available for the enjoyment of 

 every class of society. 



The southern boundary of the Lake District was largely fixed, but the northern 

 boundary was uncertain, owing to the scheme being merged in that for the whole of 

 Cumberland. 



The suitability of the Lake District for a Regional Plannmg scheme was confirmed 

 on geological grounds. The Lake District should be treated as a whole, and also as 

 a matter of special urgency. Paradoxically the natural features which linked the 

 district into one geographical unit kept its parts separate. The Cumbrian mountains 

 formed a barrier, with resultant isolation and lack of co-operation. Owing to this 

 isolation (a) hills formed boundaries of three counties : (b) there was a constant 

 demand for new roads over the hills in order to reduce distance by road ; and (c) 

 co-operation was difficult because meetings were rare and costly owing to fares and 

 time occupied on journeys. 



So far as regional planning was concerned, the only scheme actually in being 

 comprised a portion only of the south-eastern corner of the Lake District. The Lake 

 District (South) Regional Planning Committee was formed as the result of a conference 

 held at Kendal in August, 1926. It included Ambleside, Windermere, Kirkby 

 Lonsdale, and the South Westmodand Rural District. Grasmere, Kendal. The 

 Ulverston Rural District were invited to join but stood aloof. The area covered by 

 the scheme was 187,283 acres ; population 30,162 : assessable value £235,880. The 

 district included the whole of the water surface of Lake Windermere, together with 

 the islands it contained, but only one-fourth of its shore frontage, the remainder being 

 in the Ulverston Rural District (Lancashire) and unprotected. Two smaller lakes 

 were included in the scheme, Rydal and Elterwater. 



