Final Werrington Fields lease to be decided on in January

The long-running saga between Werrington residents and the Four Cs Academy Trust, which runs the Ken Stimpson school, has been ongoing for several years with both sides unable to reach a compromise on the playing fields.

The trust claims the land is for educational use and wants to fence it off for safeguarding reasons, while residents claim it has always been mixed use open space.

City councillors agreed earlier this year to lease a section of Werrington Fields known as Area C1 to the school, but the academy trust felt the area was not sufficient and launched a judicial review claim against the authority.

Much to the disappointment of the Save Werrington Fields residents campaign group and Werrington ward councillors, all city council cabinet members agreed to try and settle the claim which would ultimately reduce the council's legal costs.

Now, a date of January 20, 2026, has been set for the council's cabinet to sign off on a final draft lease agreement — the details of which are currently being finalised by external legal firms.

A city council spokesperson said: "Discussions are ongoing about whether a settlement can be reached. As this is an ongoing legal matter we cannot comment any further."

Save Werrington Fields campaigners claimed residents were being kept in the dark over the negotiations.

Council leader Shabina Qayyum previously said it was important to "balance the views" of all involved and ultimately "put the children first".

"We have always been an administration that is going to bat for the children and that was at the centre and forefront of our decision [to settle the legal claim]," she said when the decision was made.

It was reported that the council agreed to pay half the cost of erecting a fence on the playing fields, with the total cost thought to be around £80,000.

The Four Cs Academy Trust was approached for comment.