A COMMUNITY group in Frome, People For Packsaddle, has published a vision for the future of the fields it is trying to protect from development on the edge of the town.
The publication of the vision comes after the group made a formal offer to Somerset Council of £250,000 to buy the land, bringing it into community ownership, with the council yet to respond.
The land was put up for sale in 2022 by Somerset Council and an application to build 74 new homes and a children’s home was subsequently submitted by LiveWest, with a result expected this year.
The land in question is an eight acre site on the northern boundary of Frome, known as a haven for wildlife, featuring tranquil open spaces, wild grassland and ancient hedgerows.
The fields have been awarded the status of asset of community value, meaning they are recognised as being of importance to the local community and giving them additional protection from development.
People for Packsaddle want to retain the fields and turn it into a community owned and managed urban green space Picture: People for Packsaddle
The People For Packsaddle group has been working together with the local community for over two years to protect the fields from development, after Somerset Council announced they intended to sell the land, with the group describing it as a “hushed up” deal with developers, in a bid to plug their budget deficit.
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With input from local residents and biodiversity enhancement specialists First Ecology, the group says the vision document ‘A Brighter Future for Packsaddle Community Fields’ shows how, if the fields are brought into community ownership, they can contribute to Somerset Council’s own climate emergency strategy, pollinator action plan and other ecology benchmarks, while still bringing in a significant capital receipt for the council.
“We’ve worked together as a community to develop a creative and compelling concept for these magnificent fields, based on People For Packsaddle’s three core priorities: climate, conservation and community”, said Toby Culff of People for Packsaddle.
“Our vision is of a community owned and managed urban green space, benefitting wildlife, enhancing biodiversity and continuing to provide local people with an essential connection to nature.
“We are incredibly excited by the positive potential for the future, proud of the energy and commitment the community has shown in working to protect these fields, and amazed at the generosity of the pledges we’ve received to help buy the land, protecting it for future generations.”
Plans for the future include the planting of a mixed native woodland, the sensitive management of grassland to increase the diversity of pollinators and the creation of a pond to further enhance the biodiversity of the area.
Community involvement will be an important part of the future of the fields, the group says Picture: People for Packsaddle
If the group’s offer is accepted, the Frome community could get involved with monitoring wildlife like the rare Greater Horseshoe Bat, which has been observed foraging the fields, and getting involved in projects like dry stone wall reparation and laying and maintaining hedges.
Sensitive natural seating areas will be installed, encouraging more people to come and be still and enjoy the tranquillity of the site.
“We have been encouraged by recent developments at Saxonvale, with developers Acorn recognising the strength of community cohesion and withdrawing from the process there”, Mr Culff added.
“Our outline plans for the future of Packsaddle Community Fields have received an initial positive response from Frome Town Council.
“We are, however, disappointed that Somerset Council has not responded to our purchase offer made in July this year, but we look forward to constructive discussions with them once they have done the right thing and rejected this inappropriate, unsustainable and unwelcome proposal in our part of Frome.”
‘A Brighter Future for Packsaddle Community Fields’ is available to read in full on the People for Packsaddle website www.peopleforpacksaddle.org
Brilliant, I hope this all works out. If we’re not careful all our green spaces will be built over and we won’t be able to get it back. I’ll go and read the whole think. Thank you!