Talks To Be Held In Bid To End Bitter Row Over Open Space In Church Langton

Villagers are hoping the Bishop of Leicester Martyn Snow will step in to end a bitter row over an area of green space in Church Langton.

He has agreed to meet Harborough MP Neil O’Brien and Cllr Phil King, Leader of the Disrict Council, as a solution to the long running issue is sought.

The open space in the centre of the village, owned by Leicester Diocesan Board of Education, has always been used for recreation by residents, but three-quarters is now fenced off, in preparation for it to be rented out for animal grazing.

Villagers say their offer to rent it themselves, so they can continue to use it, has been rejected and fear the move could pave the way for development on the land.

Anthony Lawton is leading the fight to retain the land for community use:

Villahers in Church Langton at the open space

Neil O’Brien said,:“This is the only open space field the villagers have access to for recreation purposes, so I entirely understand and sympathise with their concerns over its future. I’ve invited the Bishop, as the leader of the Church locally, to meet with Cllr Phil King and I to discuss the future of this field – and I’m very pleased that he has accepted. I look forward to the meeting and working together in the interest of residents across the village and all others who use this space.

“It’s regrettable that relationships have become as strained as they currently are. Much of the current issues could be solved by improved dialogue and information sharing, so I look forward to working with the Bishop and Church to discuss how we can all work together on this.””

Cllr Phil King said, “Relationships have deteriorated a lot in recent months and it really doesn’t need to be this way, with better communication and a willingness to explore other possible options around the future of this much-loved open space. I echo Neil’s comments about welcoming the meeting with the Bishop, and hope we can look creatively and with good-will at the situation before us, to find a solution that works for all parties.”

The Leicester Diocesan Board of Education did not want to comment ahead of the meeting, but in a previous statement said: “This is the only arrangement that is available to the Board in its obligations to maintain its responsibility to all of our schools as well as assist the Church Langton community.

“The Board is disappointed that this proposal was not acceptable to the community as it believed this was an excellent way of ensuring there is a safe space for recreation in future. However, we will continue with our commitment to make this part of the land available for the community to use in addition to their ongoing right to use the public footpath that crosses the field.”

In response to villagers’ pleas to allow them to lease the whole field for recreational use themselves, LDBE says: “The Board is not in a position to ignore expert opinion on responsible management of its assets and investments, which must be used for the benefit of all of its schools. This means that we must retain the option of development on the land at some point in the future.”’