A recommendation to sell part of a country park to Kidderminster Harriers Football Club has been agreed by the council cabinet.
Wyre Forest District Council’s cabinet met on Thursday (July 9) to decide whether to agree a recommendation to consult on the sale of land at Burlish Country Park to the football club for football pitches.
The cabinet had been recommended to agree the principle of disposal of part of Burlish Country Park to Kidderminster Harriers Football Club subject to planning permission and consultation.
The Overview and Scrutiny Committee supported the recommendation to sell the land to the Harriers last week.
The plans have raised concerns among residents with The Friends of Burlish Meadows group being set up in a bid to protect the future of the flower-rich area of acidic grassland.
Jason Kernohan, one of the co-founders of Friends of Burlish Meadows, from Kidderminster, said: “The plans are going to be detrimental to the local environment. The land is currently managed by Wyre Forest District Council, and grants and money have been invested in the site to create an acid grassland. This is a rare habitat that links Rifle Range, The Devil’s Spittleful and Burlish Top to create a big green corridor between the towns.
“To lose this would be catastrophic.”
Campaigner Linda McKenzie said she was “shocked” that the sale was being considered and “horrified about the impact the sale will have on biodiversity”.
Kidderminster Harriers FC are proposing four full-size pitches, three of which would be artificial grass pitches, along with two smaller pitches for junior football on the Burlish Country Park site.
The club said the plan offers an “opportunity to create something that will have a lasting impact on the community” and it has committed to biodiversity mitigation measures.
The Harriers have stressed that the proposals also support the continued growth of the club’s Academy and education programmes, while creating facilities that can be used by schools, grassroots clubs, community groups and local people for generations to come.
Harriers owner Richard Lane said: “We know how important this area is to local people, and we fully respect that. People can be assured that the Burlish Top Nature Reserve is not within the scope of these plans, which also only involve around 21 per cent of Burlish Country Park.
“Significant public areas will still remain accessible to all and, further to that, we have a commitment to biodiversity mitigation measures and would intend to work closely with the council in that regard.”
Any future development remains subject to planning permission and public consultation.
Despite the cabinet outcome tonight, Friends of Burlish Meadows have vowed to keep fighting to save the land.
