Residents disappointed as council seeks to settle Werrington Fields legal claim

The dispute 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 land which is known as Werrington Fields.

In March, Peterborough city councillors agreed to lease a section of Werrington Fields (Area C1) to the Ken Stimpson Academy, albeit a smaller section than the school’s academy trust said it would accept.

After an exchange of pre-action correspondence, the academy trust filed a judicial review claim with the Administrative Court in July, claiming the authority’s decision to split the land named Area C into C1 and C2 was ‘unlawful’.

City council cabinet members met on October 14 to discuss the next steps and decide whether to defend, settle or concede the trust's legal claim.

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

It is understood that the academy trust may be prepared to accept a lease of all of Area C with the exception of a 15m wide space on three sides. There is a possibility that a settlement could be reached on these terms.

During the discussion, cabinet member for housing and regulatory services, Cllr Christian Hogg, said: "If we lose then there is going to be money out of our budget [...]. Equally, if we win the Four Cs will have to pay and that money has got to come from somewhere.

"And I'm thinking this just does not look good. The result of a judicial review does not look good for anyone."

Ward councillors John Fox, Judy Fox and Sarah Hillier all spoke at the meeting and urged cabinet members to fight the legal claim.

Cllr Hillier said: "The difficult position the cabinet has been placed in has been brought about by an academy trust who have constantly changed their position about what they want or what they are willing to accept as reasonable.

"In the view of Save Werrington Fields who have negotiated and compromised, and many other local residents we were elected to represent, the Four Cs MAT have chosen to turn a blind eye to a common sense compromise."

After the meeting, Jenna Maryniak of the Save Werrington Fields group told the Local Democracy Reporting Service that she was "absolutely gutted".

"This is devastating news for the residents of Werrington," she said.

"[The academy trust] has refused to agree to the compromise that was supported in a vote by the full council, and is what the 800 plus members of Save Werrington Fields, the local councillors and the MP has been fighting for for over five years.

"It was a compromise that even the academy agreed was sufficient to deliver their curriculum.

"It is a show of utter contempt for democracy and the community of Werrington by the academy.

"They are not interested in getting the students back on the fields, or they would have agreed to a compromise years ago – it’s a simple land grab."

Ms Maryniak added: "We will fight on because access to green space is absolutely essential for our mental health and well-being, as well as our enjoyment of living in Werrington."

A report put before cabinet members stated that defending the claim would be expected to cost the council £100,000, as well as paying the academy trust's costs of between £100,000 and £200,000 if the authority were to lose.

Council leader Shabina Qayyum 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," she said.

Werrington Fields has been used by both the public and the school for decades, but the school now wishes to fence off the area due to concerns over safeguarding risks to pupils.

All parties are in dispute over the use of the land, with the trust claiming it to be educational while residents say it is mixed use open space.

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

The Four Cs Academy Trust has been approached for comment.