School moves fence back eight metres
A SCHOOL has moved a controversial fence that it was ordered to pull down.
Widewell Primary School lost a planning application in the summer and was ordered to remove a steel fence around its 4.7 hectares of playing fields.
-
Widewell Primary School
The school was given until yesterday to take down the 1.8-metre fence, which residents said was keeping them out of an area they had used for more than 40 years.
Now the school has moved the fence eight metres back from Lulworth Drive in Southway in an attempt to get around the need for planning permission.
The school trust claims that the new position of the fence means it is no longer "adjacent to a highway" and therefore is not subject to the usual planning rules.
The educational trust which runs the school says in its application for a "lawful development certificate" that it does not believe the new fence would require planning permission.
City planners will have to decide at their meeting on Thursday next week whether the school needs planning permission.
Mike Gibson, president of Widewell Residents' Association, said: "This has been outrageous from start to finish.
"At the moment we are at a bit of a loss. It's beginning to look a bit difficult to find the next step forward.
"The planning department says it has looked up 20 similar cases around the country where this has been used in the past and the opposition has apparently never been successful."
Mr Gibson said: "People are upset and angry. The impact of the new fence will be the same as the old one. It will still be an ugly fence in a new location and it will still prevent access to the fields that the planning committee decided should be preserved."
In 2002 Plymouth city councillors voted unanimously to declare fields next to the school surplus to educational needs. Through an oversight that has yet to be explained, the decision was never enacted and the fields remained a part of the school.
The playing fields were fenced off in June 2008 when Widewell became a trust school.
Ted Willey, chairman of the residents' association, has accused the school of "raising two fingers to both their neighbours and the planning committee".
23 Comments
View all
by Frosty, Plymouth
Thursday, January 07 2010, 7:56PM
“I saw the snow man/women outside the offices today, it looked cold, heartless,standing alone and like the snow on the roads, the residents of widewell will be glad to see the back of it.
Very ironic!”
by CementMixer, plymouth
Friday, January 01 2010, 7:14PM
“Bit harsh calling kids retards. True most footballers are not too bright (Rooney would struggle to get GCSEs) but really would expect better from an FA coach. Which I presume you are if you were running teams.”
by cement mixer, plymouth
Friday, January 01 2010, 7:12PM
“Who did you pay Big Si?
As I've had it explained to me the school only wishes to cover costs of maintaining the pitches but no-one wants to pay the actual cost they all want the school to subsidise it like PCC did (illegally keeping revenues in Parks dept wilst charging Ed dept maintenance fees instead of passing on the revenues).
Or were you the one running teams, charging kids and not paying anything to anyone? Someone was!”
by Big Si, plymouth
Thursday, December 31 2009, 5:19PM
“I, ran two football teams saturday on those pitches for two years, kept the kids off the streets retards!”
by tinks, plymouth
Thursday, December 31 2009, 3:20PM
“General question - what's wrong with your kids playing in their own gardens?
If the land belongs to the school and they have to pay for the upkeep of it e.g. grass cutting and removal of doggie doos, then why do people think they have the right to help themselves to the space. If it belongs to the school, and I'm assuming it does as they are the ones being told they can't put the fence up, then it belongs to the school and they are under no legal obligation to share it with anyone. Using the argument that it will mean more kids playing in the street is just passing the buck. Your kids are your responsibility so look after them, just as you expect the school to do while they are in it's care!! Simples.”