Campaigners 'upset and angry' as field fenced off

Campaigners say they are "upset and angry" after a green space used by locals for 50 years was fenced off.

As the landowner, Somerset Council said it had to close the permissive footpath on Packsaddle Fields as it was working with a developer to deliver homes there.

Toby Culff, from campaign group People for Packsaddle, said it had been "really tough" to see "a space we love... suddenly surrounded by a perimeter of very aggressive, austere metal fencing".

Somerset Council said it was committed to supporting its plan for homes on the site, which it said had been "earmarked for development" for 50 years.

Culff said a housing estate was built in the 1970s around the green space, which was originally meant to have a school built on it.

"It was left, basically, by the council and adopted by the local community," he said.

Culff said the land on the edge of Frome was "rugged and it's wild and it's open and it's green" – and had become "absolutely invaluable for local people as a recreational resource".

He said he felt the fence was a "cruel and vindictive way to get back at the community".

The former Somerset County Council had entered into an agreement in 2022 with housing association LiveWest for 74 homes and a children's home to be built on the land.

But LiveWest's planning application was turned down by the successor authority, Somerset Council, and that decision was upheld on appeal by the Planning Inspectorate.

It ruled the loss of green space would be "substantial and harmful" to the wellbeing of residents.

The decision was welcomed by People for Packsaddle after years of campaigning.

Somerset Council is nevertheless still planning to hand over ownership of the land to LiveWest so the developer can build homes.

Anna Sabine, MP for Frome & East Somerset, said she had written to LiveWest "urging" it to reconsider its approach.

"Housing associations play a vital role in providing affordable homes, but they must work with communities, not against them.

"I understand how strongly local people feel about Packsaddle Fields. Developers must listen to communities, not threaten them."

Frome Town Council leader Fiona Barrows said she was "shocked and deeply dismayed" by the decision to fence off the land.

A Somerset Council spokesperson said: "Somerset Council remains committed to supporting plans to deliver new homes on the Packsaddle site.

"The site has been in council ownership and earmarked for development for 50 years.

"A decision to dispose of the land was taken and a contract was signed in July 2022 with LiveWest, enabling the developer to submit a planning application ahead of purchasing the site.

"Whilst the first application did not gain planning approval, the pressing need for new housing remains; the council will continue to support this aim.

"As part of our commitment, we are required to comply with the contract.

"Failure to do so, as we have outlined, could incur legal action and a sizeable financial penalty.

"We have a duty to council tax payers to responsibly manage the land ahead of its future disposal and development, which is why we have agreed to close the permissive footpath across the site and have installed fencing to protect the existing public right of way."

A LiveWest spokesperson said: "LiveWest does not own the land at Packsaddle Fields.

"We continue to work closely with Somerset Council, as landowner, to explore the potential of the site for the development of much-needed affordable housing."

Follow BBC Somerset on Facebook and X. Send your story ideas to us on email or via WhatsApp on 0800 313 4630.