MP calls for Peterborough City Council to back residents in dispute over use of Werrington Fields

Peterborough MP Paul Bristow has backed residents in Werrington concerned at plans to fence off publicly accessible fields for use by a school.

Now Mr Bristow has called on Peterborough City Council to think again and ensure that the Werrington Fields near Ken Stimpson Academy are not closed entirely to residents.

His demand comes after the council announced last month that it needed to safeguard pupils who use the fields for play and would be progressing with plans to fence off the Fields.

It has also said that while it does not need official permission to put up a fence of two metres or less on the land, it will submit a planning application for a variation to the fields’ use because residents “feel” that they are a community asset.

The move comes after the Secretary of State for Education had told the council a partially fenced off field would take the school below the minimum area of soft landscaping required per head of pupil.

But in a letter to Matt Gladstone, the council's chief executive, Mr Bristow states: “For many years now there have been proposals to enclose the fields to a variety of degrees.

"I was pleased that a compromise of sorts was reached in a previous proposal.

"I have been contacted by many constituents who are incredibly frustrated that these previous proposals have been abandoned and the prospect of enclosing the entirety of the fields has reared its ugly head once again.

“The openness now offered by the unfenced fields was and remains an integral part of the nature of the Werrington development and is a key reason why many people have decided to make their homes in Werrington.

“I am sure - together - we could make officials in the Department of Education understand this is best for the local area.

"Please don't just give up and make a mistake that will cause distress and resentment for many years.”

The Academy has used the fields since the 1980s, but began to raise safeguarding concerns over the public having shared access to them in the late 2010s.