WESTBURY’S Vivash Park, which is in the final stages of being taken over by Westbury Town Council, could become a Local Green Space to protect the area for future generations.
If agreed, the Local Green Space designation would provide special protection against development and ensure the park is retained for years to come. To achieve the status, the town will need to prove that the area is of particular importance to the local community.
Town councillors considered the idea for the park at a meeting of their highways, planning & development committee, held on Monday 15th November. The request had come from the Neighbourhood Plan team who asked that once the park handover is complete, would the town council consider the area for Local Green Space designation. Final snagging issues are currently being resolved as Westbury Town Council prepares to take over the park land from David Wilson Homes.
The park was developed as part of David Wilson Homes’ lakeside development near the town’s railway station.
Cllr Ward Jones, who has been leading the group organising the town council’s takeover of the park says, “It is potentially a community site. It is a marvellous open space which could be used for outdoor events in the community. The biodiverse site could also be tremendously useful for educational purposes.”
At the meeting, councillors agreed that the LGS designation would be a great asset to the town. They said that the park is well used at the moment, but more people probably aren’t aware of the park.
Cllr Gordon King said he believed that the area is already valued by the local community, but he understood that in applying for Local Green Space status, the town council would have to prove that the area is well-used. He said, “My question is, how are we going to measure that and provide evidence?”
Councillors suggested providing publicity about Vivash Park and perhaps a questionnaire asking if the public want the area to be protected.
Clerk to the town council, Deborah Urch, said that they had carried out a survey of around 100 people at two town events; the chilli festival and the U3A promotion day. She said at those events, they received 100% support for the idea.
She added,” We have done a number of surveys and found that we do have a bat cave and we know there are birds living on Vivash Park that are on the amber list for the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds. We haven’t been able to do a DNA test to prove this, but the survey that was done suggests that there would be a number of lizards and adders.”
The clerk explained that the park contains an ancient hedge which needs to be protected and they believed that great crested newts were in the area, but further proof was needed.
Westbury Town Council is collecting local opinion about Vivash Park and you can email them at info@westburytowncouncil.gov.uk
