LETTERS – Public should be consulted

Spalding & District Civic Society shares the concerns of residents in Chiltern Drive, the wider Ladywood estate and the surrounding area, over proposals by South Holland District Council to extend Spalding Cemetery on to part of Chiltern Drive Playing Field.

The shortage of space at the cemetery has been known for well over ten years.

Indeed, the council has considered the option before, even submitting a planning application in 2011 which the council’s planning committee refused because the proposal would lead to an unacceptable loss of open space.

The society feels that if this proposal is pursued again there will be an elevated level of public disquiet and objections including from bodies such as Sport England again.

Rather than pursue a plan that has been refused in the past, we urge the council to properly and transparently engage with key stakeholders and the general public.

We are willing to act as a co-ordinating body to bring key stakeholders together to air the problem of the lack of space at the cemetery and to agree a shortlist of alternative options that will ensure that there is sufficient space for burials in Spalding in future.

These options could then be put out to wider consultation with the public before work is undertaken to determine the viability of the preferred options. Following this, there would be greater confidence that there would be a general consensus when the council puts forward a formal proposal.

The society would also be willing to enable a discussion on the longstanding shortage of open space in Spalding.

Fields In Trust recommend that there should be 2.4 ha. of accessible green space per 1,000 people. None of the Spalding District Council wards meet this standard.

As it is now accepted that open accessible green space is beneficial to mental wellbeing and given that the lack of accessible facilities is a barrier to physical health in Spalding, we feel it is imperative for the town that the shortfall in open space is addressed, as this will also deliver an economic benefit to our over stretched health services.

It is certainly the case that a plan to address the shortage of burial spaces does need to be put into place before the town council that will be responsible for running the cemetery/cemeteries in Spalding is established.

Securing a consensus in the town seems to us to be the most effective way of achieving that aim.

Spalding and District Civic Society

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