The future of Cooper’s Meadow – the water meadow in the centre of the town beside the River Kennet – became clearer last week when Wiltshire councillors on the Marlborough Area Board voted in favour of transferring its ownership from Wiltshire Council to the town council.
At present the town council have a lease on the meadow and ownership became an issue during the recent dispute over whether the terms of that lease were being broken – specifically in relation to sheep grazing on the meadow.
The move of ownership will be carried out through Wiltshire Council’s Community Asset Transfer scheme. The town council’s aim is to work more closely with local community groups free from restrictions of the previous lease.
It has already been agreed that grazing, clearly popular with many local people, can go ahead in the spring.
Marlborough’s Mayor, Councillor Marian Hannaford-Dobson is delighted with this move: “We are looking forward to working alongside our community groups to make sure that Cooper’s Meadow remains a fabulous asset and amenity for Marlborough. We have a draft management plan drawn together by our Grounds and Estates Manager and will soon be setting up meetings to learn about how our residents would like to see this land used.”