Police officer raises 'serious concerns for public safety' over planned footpath by Netherton United clubhouse

A police officer says she has “serious concerns for public safety” over plans to build a new footpath in Peterborough.

Jules Hanrahan, a ‘designing out crime’ officer at Cambridgeshire Constabulary, objected to proposals to create a new path across Westwood Grange Recreation Ground.

The new path will link up with an existing path to the west of Netherton United FC’s clubhouse as part of a scheme to extend the clubhouse at the front, side and rear.

This was approved by Peterborough City Council (PCC), but not before Ms Hanrahan objected to it over concerns related to the new path.

“Public narrow footpaths should not run to the rear of buildings, as these have been proven to generate crime, particularly when looking at the use for the football ground,” Ms Hanrahan wrote to PCC.

They should also be “as straight and as short as possible with a minimum width of 3m” in order to “avoid potential physical conflict points as pedestrians pass each other”, she wrote.

The doors and windows to the rear of the clubhouse will be next to the path, although these will be inward opening and used for fire escape purposes only, PCC says.

The footpath will also be 2.85m wide, but PCC says that “the recommended 3m width is "where space permits" and whilst desirable is not a policy requirement and is not achievable in this instance”.

Ms Hanrahan’s comments were received by the council on 5th February after she was contacted by a “concerned member of the public” who sent photos of the recreation ground.

“Having viewed the photos myself with the proposed location of this new footpath, I have serious concerns for public safety, should this footpath be relocated to the proposed location,” she wrote to PCC, before laying out the above recommendations for designing footpaths.

Nevertheless, it granted planning permission for the scheme on 8th February.

PCC says that designs for the new footpath were amended to address concerns, albeit before Ms Hanrahan’s objection.

Changes included increasing the path from 2.15m wide to 2.85m wide and attaching conditions to planning permission ensuring CCTV cameras and external lighting are installed.

The existing path across the recreation ground, linking Ledbury Road and Portman Close with Thorpe Park Road, will also remain open, while the new footpath will create “an additional thoroughfare for pedestrian and cycle traffic”, PCC says.

But while the footpath has proven contentious, there has been support for the clubhouse’s expansion.

PCC says that it notes “a large number of representations from the public in support of the proposal based on the community provision and enhancement, especially in relation to health and wellbeing”.