Campaign to protect Smith's Wood playing field gathers pace

HUNDREDS of people have signed a petition calling for the council to abandon plans to build on Bosworth Wood playing field.
Under current plans the land has been earmarked for up to 100 homes, but some residents have argued that the scheme “isn’t in the interests” of the local community.
Other Side of Solihull recently reported on the concerns raised by former Smith’s Wood councillor Graham Craig, who believes it would be shortsighted to develop a site which may one day need to be returned to educational use.
His fear is that Solihull Council has underestimated the likely rise in demand for school places, with more young families expected to move onto the estate in future.
From the residents’ point of view, trying to crowd more houses onto the land would put further strain on local services and lead to the loss of a valued open space.
The field, off Auckland Drive, is one of the largest sites of its kind in the area and is regularly used by local sports teams and to host events including a monthly car boot sale.
The petition was started online by Aimee Mallinson, a community development worker for the area. Summarising the concerns, her petition said: “This area is already densely populated with 1,500 properties and since the closure of Bosworth Wood Primary School, local children are having to go out of the area as Smith’s Wood Primary Academy is full. Bringing in another 100 families to the area is only going to increase this issue.”
Within days of the campaign being launched, hundreds of people had put their name to it.
Joanne Poyner wrote: “We desperately need to stop building on every bit of grass. There’s too little green space as it is.”
Another backer, Victoria Kesterton, said: “It’s important to keep green playing fields for all because they’re the only place our children and families will have to get fresh air into [their] lungs.”
Councillor Ian Courts, the Deputy Leader of Solihull Council, has promised a full consultation before any plans to release the playing field for development are agreed.