Petition launched to reopen park to public

Local residents say that there is nowhere else in the village for children and families to play

A petition to reopen a park in Warwickshire to the public has attracted more than 700 signatures.

Welford park is owned by Welford Primary School, and was available for use by the community outside the school's opening hours. The decision was made to close it, due to safeguarding concerns.

People living in the village say as a result, children and families have nowhere to play.

Warwickshire County Council said although it was the owner of the school and field, it was the school's decision to no longer allow public access.

Abi Burgoine said three generations of her family had used the park

Welford-on-Avon Parish Council said discussions were ongoing, and that its priority was the community.

It added that it would do its best to ensure that a "valuable community asset" could continue to be used by generations to come.

The park has been open for community use for more than 60 years, and this includes three generations of Abi Burgoine's family.

"We accept that the park should be locked whilst the field is in use by the school," she said.

"But we're going into six weeks where that field is not being used. There needs to be some compromise. From a moral perspective, it's not right."

Ms Burgoine added that she had seen people playing football on grass next to the road in the area, as there was nowhere else to go.

"If we are really concerned about the safety of children here, which we should be, then we should be keeping spaces like this open that are safe and visible," she said.

The petition has reached 713 of its 1,000-signature target.

"It's wrong, the kids have got nowhere to go. They cant play in the street," said Ray Parr, who has lived in the village for 14 years.

"The population of the village has exploded, and there's lots of children," Jane Bryan told BBC Coventry and Warwickshire.

"It would be lovely for them to have a space to run around safely without any dogs, or the chance of any dog poo anywhere.

"It's very very sad."

In its statement, Warwickshire County Council said that there had been increasing legal requirements on schools, regarding the safeguarding and health and safety of pupils.

"Although the public only used the school field outside school hours, it has proven impossible to guarantee that the field is in a fit state for use by pupils the next day," it said.

"The School has offered to discuss alternative arrangements with the parish council such as the provision of a secure area within the field for play equipment."