A school has been given planning permission to fence off its playing field despite community concerns about a loss of open green space.
Varndean School, in Balfour Road, Brighton, said that the mesh fence – some 550 yards or 500 metres long and 10ft or 3m high – would create a “clearly defined and secure boundary”.
A report said that 37 people wrote to Brighton and Hove City Council to object to the proposal compared with six letters or comments in support.
Objectors’ cited included loss of green space and loss of access to the school’s 3G pitch, the design and height of the fence, public health concerns and land ownership.
The council’s Planning Committee was told that the council is the freeholder and that other local schools such as Dorothy Stringer and Blatchington Mill had been given permission for similar fences.
When the committee met at Hove Town Hall yesterday (Wednesday 5 August), seven councillors voted in favour of the fence. Green councillor Sue Shanks voted against and Conservative councillor Ivan Lyons abstained.
Councillor Shanks said that people in the area wanted to use the land outside of school hours as they had done for years.
There was no information to suggest that anything had happened to give rise to the need for a fence.
She said: “I don’t see why we need to have (this). You can see through it but fences are fences. It’s really high. If people want to get over it, they’ll get over it anyway.”
Councillor Lyons said that neither the school nor any of the objectors attended the meeting to answer questions about why the fence might be needed or not.
He said: “What’s the reasons for it now? Has there been any particular problems there at the school in regard to safeguarding of late to bring the application forward at this time? No. That information is not out there.”
Green councillor Kerry Pickett said: “I went to school many moons ago and we didn’t have any fencing at all but now things have changed and it’s a safeguarding issue.
“It’s really sad that we have to put these huge fences around children but I’m going to vote for it.”
Brighton and Hove Independent councillor Mark Earthey said: “This is a statutory requirement for safeguarding.
“No matter how unreasonable we think that is compared with the days of our youth, I think we have to vote for it unless there’s any clear reason not to.”
Labour councillor Tobias Sheard said: “The perceived threats, whether they be protection internally or threats externally to the school, whatever they may be, have reached a point where this needs to be done.
“It’s such a shame that the fencing looks so industrial. It looks very ‘in your face’. It doesn’t really feel like a natural fence to put around a green space.”
When work starts, the fencing is expected to be up in about eight weeks. No start was given to the committee.
To protect the kids from the boat people as a city of sanctuary they sure are scared about who they are importing