A RESIDENTS’ group is ‘very disappointed’ following a recommendation by the planning inspectorate against an application for village green status, at Hanwell’s Waterside Playing Fields.
The long-running saga over the site began in May 2009, when an application was first submitted to the council by Hanwell Community Forum for permission to change the site’s status.
The forum wanted to see the spot protected against what it called ‘unsuitable and inappropriate development, and to ensure continued unrestricted and free access to all areas’.
But Ealing Council, which owns the land, objected, along with the head teacher and chair of governors at Elthorne Park High School.
Although the original application area was later reduced, a public inquiry was held in September last year and the matter was deferred to an independent planning inspector. The inspectorate has produced a report which Ealing’s regulatory services committee was due to discuss last night (Thursday).
An excerpt from the report said: “The council could not in all circumstances deny that the public has a right to use the reduced application land as public open space under the Open Spaces Act and/or Public Health Act. Thus the council is under a public law duty to allow the use of the land for that purpose.”
Carolyn Brown, chair of Hanwell Community Forum. said: “We are very disappointed at this recommendation. We did our best to get this pushed through but it looks as if the odds were stacked against us.
“I can’t say I was hugely surprised, but at one point we really did believe that this decision could have gone either way.”
Although the planning inspectorate has made a recommendation, it is ultimately up to the council’s regulatory services committee to decide how the application for registration should be determined.
Ms Brown said the forum will still be pushing for the council to make some changes at the site: “We’re going to be asking for the dog-fouling zone at the fields to be removed. It has not been very well maintained. It is also counter-productive and has been abused by a number of irresponsible dog owners.”
