Sean Bean's moving tribute to Sheffield greenbelt campaigner Sapphire McCarthy after her tragic sudden death

Actor Sean Bean has paid a moving tribute to Sapphire McCarthy, the S13 greenbelt campaign leader, calling her “a resistance fighter” and “an inspiration who will spur us all on.”

Sapphire McCarthy was a Handsworth resident who spearheaded the S13 greenbelt campaign in April, after plans were revealed to build 1,638 homes on greenbelt land.

She died unexpectedly in June after organising a residents’ meeting attended by more than 200 people, including council leader Tom Hunt, local councillors and MP Clive Betts.

Campaigners have since renamed the group Save S13 Greenbelt – The Sapphire McCarthy Campaign.

Bean, who grew up in Handsworth, said: “I spoke to Sapphire some months ago and we discussed everything and I just remember her being so passionate and becoming very quickly a kind of ‘resistance fighter’.

“This city of Sheffield was built on people standing up to things, resistance and not being afraid to speak their mind and Saph was such a person.

“It is incredibly sad and it just spurs us on even more to resist this plan to build on S13 and it's an inspiration to her and to her memory.”

The Game of Thrones star accused Sheffield City Council of targeting S13 while leaving more affluent areas untouched.

He said: “They wouldn’t put up with it on their doorstep… we are not pushovers up in Handsworth and surrounding areas.”

“It's been termed as ‘wasteland’, kind of quite sneakily really, in order for it to appear they are building on land which is never used and never appreciated but it has its history and tradition - it is pure greenbelt,” he said.

Campaigners argue the loss of 90 per cent of S13’s green space would damage health, increase traffic and pollution, and overwhelm local services.

They have collected 4,000 signatures and raised £10,000 to fight with legal action - though they say they will need more than this to fund legal battles.

They have also set up a website to update residents, and a GoFundMe page to continue funding this cause.

Claire Pennington, one of the campaigners who met with Sean Bean , said: “We are honoured that Sean paid such an emotive and heartfelt tribute to Sapphire who understood from the off that this plan was not just unfair to current residents—it threatened the very fabric of Sheffield families who want to continue living where they grew up, yet lack any assurances in the Local Plan to make that possible.

“We pledge to carry forward the mission she championed—to safeguard S13 and Sheffield more broadly by advocating for sensible, sustainable, and community-centered planning and really hope the independent Government inspectors listen to our very real concerns.”

Government planning inspectors begin hearings into Sheffield’s Local Plan, which includes the S13 sites, on Monday.

The plans - the biggest green belt development proposal in years - were drawn up after the Government asked Sheffield Council to identify land for 3,529 homes and 130 acres for business as part of the city’s Local Plan - a blueprint for development over the next 14 years.

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The authority says it had to choose green belt because brownfield sites have been ‘maximised’.

Government inspectors recognised the importance of the green belt but said meeting housing and employment needs was also an “important objective,” a Sheffield City Council spokesperson said previously.

They added: “Since then, the council has been looking into additional areas of the city that could be used to meet the increased need. The council has always explored site options with a ‘brownfield first’ policy; however, all of those options have been maximised already. As a result, sites within the green belt have been looked into.”