Sirs,
I read the article by your columnist Jo Carroll with great interest. Ms Carroll draws attention to the lack of play spaces for young children and she is absolutely correct. This is a group who are the future and who need safe space near housing where they can play have exercise and interact.
There is an area of space between College Fields and Barton Park which is perfectly suitable for play for all age groups.
At present there are no facilities or amenities in this space and it is difficult to walk into especially with buggies etc. It is surrounded with houses and is safe and secure.
This area seemed to be under threat from the council who at one time wanted to develop it and remove it as a community amenity.
Local residents have applied to have this area designated as a village green. Surely this must be right. We don’t want every space sold off by the council for a quick buck like Rabley Fields. The council should be custodians of these important spaces and retain these community assets. If it were designated as a village green and only Wiltshire Council can do this then it could be transferred to the Town Council as a community space and residents could be consulted as to how it can be improved with better pedestrian access so it can become a more usable space.
Will Wiltshire Council do the right thing and support the 1000 people who live in these areas and designate it as a village green for public use or do they simply view it as a piece of real estate .
Yours,
Ian Mellor
Marlborough