Main Road recreation ground (Kinnerton)
The Petition of residents of Higher Kinnerton, Flintshire,
Declares that earlier this year the Community Council nominated Main Road Recreation Ground to be protected under the Queen Elizabeth II Fields in Trust Challenge—a UK wide programme to celebrate the Diamond Jubilee and London Olympic Games by permanently protecting outdoor recreational spaces for future generations. However Flintshire County Council refused the nomination claiming the site has “long-term residential development potential” which appears to contradict with Flintshire County Council’s own Unitary Development Plan which describes the field as “an important green space within the heart of Higher Kinnerton providing a green break within the built fabric of the village”.
Further that Flintshire County Council have now rejected an application to register Main Road Recreation Ground as a new village green—a move which had been supported by organisations including Campaign for the Protection of Rural Wales (CPRW) and national charity Play Wales; further that Alyn and Deeside MP Mark Tami and AM Carl Sargeant had also written to Flintshire County Council’s chief executive Colin Everett supporting the application for village green status and the move to retain this area of land for recreational use.
Further that the Petitioners believe that there is a real risk that unless the land is awarded Field in Trust status, designated as a village green or alternatively Flintshire County Council agree to a long-term lease of the land to the Community Council for recreational use beyond 2015, that the community will lose a valuable and much used recreational area in the heart of the village.
The Petitioners therefore request that the House of Commons urge the Government to secure protected status for Main Road Recreation Ground.
And the Petitioners remain, etc.—[Presented by Mark Tami, Official Report, 12 February 2013; Vol. 558, c. 828.]
[P001154]
Observations from the Secretary of State for Wales:
Responsibility for Local Authorities and the decision-making process for town and village green applications in Wales are devolved. As such they are properly for the relevant Local Authorities, the Welsh Government and their agencies.