Village green plans recommended for refusal

Ryhall and Belmesthorpe Parish Council want to turn this piece of land in Ryhall into a village green

A parish council's plan to turn a piece of green space into a village green has been recommended for refusal.

Ryhall and Belmesthorpe Parish Council want to turn the land - known as "the field" in Ryhall - into community space but planning officers at Rutland County Council said it did not meet the legal criteria.

The county council has the power to register the land as a village green if an application shows that residents have used it for lawful sports and pastimes for at least 20 years.

But planning officers said: "This brings about a right of interruption of the 20-year use and, despite there being sound evidence of recreational usage for the period, it fails the 'as of right' test."

The parish council made the bid to turn the space into a village green in March last year, but on the final day of the consultation period, the authority received an objection from the trust that owned the land, the Local Democracy Reporting Service said.

This trust – which is not named in the report – has since registered the land and provided proof of ownership.

Before the application was made to turn it into a village green, it had been assumed the land had belonged to the village or the tenant farmer.