Peterborough councillor urges academy trust to listen to residents over Werrington Fields saga

A Peterborough city councillor has urged an academy trust to listen to the community’s wishes following a six-year playing field dispute between residents and a school.

An extraordinary full council meeting took place in Peterborough on March 13 to put an end to the long-running saga over a piece of land which has caused a divide between the people of Werrington and the Ken Stimpson Academy.

During the meeting, councillors voted through an amendment which means the council must now seek to lease a smaller area of the playing fields (known as Area C1) to the Four C’s Academy Trust than the trust has indicated it would agree to.

“I’d hope, given it was quite a majority of councillors that passed the amendment, that the Four C’s read the room"

Councillor Christian Hogg, who put forward the amendment, said: “I’m pleased that councillors could see the value in the amendment and ultimately it’s all about listening to our residents.”

The full council meeting descended into a state of confusion at one stage as councillors and officers tried to figure out who held responsibility for the final decision.

While it was initially stated that the full council’s recommendation would need final approval from the executive, it was eventually decided that the full council’s decision on the night would be final.

Cllr Hogg, who is the Liberal Democrat group leader, added: “There was a lot of toing and froing in terms of governance and what the decision was actually going to mean, which wasn’t ideal. It was confusing for us, let alone for the public.

“In terms of the way forward, this is what the council is going to go to the Four C’s with as an offer. We can’t force the trust to accept that. Until we get an agreement from them, it’s not a done deal.

“I’d hope, given it was quite a majority of councillors that passed the amendment, that the Four C’s read the room and understand this is something they are going to have to put up with.

“If they are an educational trust that is meant to be there for the community, they need to be listening to the community. It just seems that up to this point they haven’t been doing so.”

“The public spoke and we should be honouring that decision"

Werrington ward councillor, John Fox, remained frustrated after the meeting, claiming that ward councillors and the neighbourhood council have still not been involved in discussions with the academy trust.

He said: “It’s a difficult one and, to be honest, I’m now slightly more confused. What I’ve said many times before – we had a public consultation in 2021 and all parties agreed that four football pitches was ample.

“Something has happened where they’ve gone from four to nearly six. Who made that decision, why have they gone against the consultation and why has there not been a further consultation with the public?

“The school has not increased in population so why do they need another two football pitches? They don’t. That’s my stand, it always has been and it always will be. The public spoke and we should be honouring that decision.”

It is now up to the Four C’s Academy Trust to decide if it is willing to accept the compromise put forward by councillors.

While the trust has yet to issue a comment since the meeting, it is expected that the offer will be rejected and the council could face a legal challenge.

Following the council meeting, Peterborough MP Andrew Pakes said: “This isn’t the end of the saga. But a clear message from councillors that the school and community can both get something out of this – a safe playing field and space open to the community.”

The amendment voted through by councillors means the school could fence off 63.5 per cent of the field for educational use, in line with the school building, as opposed to the suggested 77 per cent which would see a strip of land around the fencing left for the public.

Ken Stimpson Academy has been approached for comment.