ITS future has been uncertain for nearly 50 years but campaigners are again working to preserve at least part of the site.

Bushfield Camp and the adjacent Bushfield Down has been disused since the mid-1970s when the Ministry of Defence pulled out.

Since then there have been several attempts to secure the long-term future of the downland area between the camp and Whiteshute Ridge. A bid for Millennium funding for a country park was unsuccessful as was a later attempt to have it declared a ‘village green’.

Now Bo Priestley is campaigning for the downland to be saved from any form of development. The camp area, off Badger Farm Road, is earmarked in the local plan as a potential business park.

She has been lobbying the city council, speaking to interested local parties, including Hampshire Gardens Trust, and the owners, the Church Commissioners, who are planning to put forward fresh proposals this spring.

At the moment the downland is gradually reverting to scrub, the first stage of it returning to woodland.

Ms Priestley, of Fairfield Road, Fulflood, said local people were exploring the idea of a community purchase.

She said: “I think Bushfield Down must be one of Winchester’s best-kept secrets - 25 hectares of ancient rolling unimproved chalk downland with fabulous views over St Cross, St Catherine’s Hill and the water meadows, tucked into the triangle between Badger Farm, Stanmore and St Cross. Once you’ve found it, you don’t forget it! It feels like untouched countryside, but it’s only just over a mile from the Buttercross.

“Bushfield Down is currently scheduled under city’s 2013 Local Plan to be ‘laid out for [public] recreational purposes in perpetuity’, reflecting its long-standing status as a much-loved ‘green wedge’ into the city.

“Many local people regard Bushfield Down as a very special place for people and wildlife, especially as we consider a future beyond coronavirus.

“Since June last year, I’ve been pursuing getting some proper protection and management for this small but locally very significant green space.”

She has support from renowned landscape architect Kim Wilkie, who lives near Bishop’s Waltham.

He told the Chronicle: “Winchester is one of the most remarkable cities in Europe for the way that it sits in its landscape. The city was founded in a bowl of chalk tributaries and water meadows, ringed by ancient chalk grassland downs. The relationship between the open downs and the Roman settlement still survives. Looking in from the surrounding countryside, the principal buildings are still the cathedral, college chapel and guildhall, silhouetted against the downs.

“And looking out, you can catch glimpses of open neolithic downland in all directions. St Catherine’s and St Giles Hills are the best known, but Bushfield is just as important in the complete pattern.”

Mr Wilkie added: “At a moment when Winchester is both under pressure to expand and to give people access to open countryside, the restoration of Bushfield Down to grazed chalk grassland is especially significant. Bushfield is a key part of an ancient landscape that is as relevant to a city besieged by Covid as it was to King Alfred’s refuge from the Danes.”

Hampshire and Isle of Wight Wildlife Trust is willing to manage the land in the same way it is grazing British White cattle on nearby Whiteshute Ridge, next to Badger Farm.

Debbie Tann, trust chief executive in a letter of support, said: “The Vision for Bushfield Down recognises the existing and potential value of the land for people. We consider that Winchester is still deficient in public green space and must explore well-placed new green infrastructure as a matter of urgency to keep pace with the population.

“We continue to witness intensified pressure on sensitive sites, including on our nature reserves, and an enhanced Bushfield Down will help to dilute some of this pressure. Identifying the area as Local Green Space is an important step towards addressing this shortfall.”