Cotford St Luke Parish Council's Crowdfunder to save green space

Four acres of land in Cotford St Luke, owned by the NHS, are to be sold on Wednesday, March 24, with a guide price of £30,000 to £35,000.

The land is being sold by the NHS to put vital funds back into the health service.

Cotford St Luke Parish Council was not notified about the sale until just two weeks before the auction - but they were not asked if they would like to buy the land.

The parish council can put around £25,000 towards the sale and so they are trying to raise the rest of the funds through a Crowdfunder page.

Councillor Lisa Davies from Cotford St Luke Parish Council, said if they managed to buy the land, there would be a consultation to find out how the village want to use it.

“The first we heard about the auction was a sign going up on the road,” she said.

“We were definitely willing to raise the money to buy the land, but we weren’t told about it or given the option to buy it.

“We found out about the land being sold with just two weeks to spare and so it has been a rush to put everything together and raise the money in time.

“A few ideas we have had so far is using the land as an allotment space, a community garden but also something like a skate or bike park.

“We’ve got a lot of children and young people in the area but there is not a lot for them to do.

“The plan for the land would be something the parish council would talk to the community about and encourage people to contribute.

“Over lockdown, we’ve seen so many people out there enjoying the green space and this land is about a third of the open land around the village.

“The NHS may not have been legally obliged to offer the land to the council but we feel they missed an opportunity to contribute to the health and wellbeing of our residents, whilst still raising the funds that we all acknowledge the health service badly needs.”

NHS Property Services have been contacted for comment.

To donate, visit www.crowdfunder.co.uk/save-our-green-space---cotford-st-luke.