I AM writing to express my concern about the play area at the back of Abbotsfield Hall Nursing Home.
When I moved into Orchard Close in 1972 the original play area was at the retreat. This was subsequently sold and some land at the back of the nursing home was designated as a play area so that the local children had somewhere safe to play. This piece of land was redesigned as open land in approximately 2004 with no consultation or involvement from the local community.
The properties committee are meeting on January 26 to make a recommendation about the future of this land prior to the full Tavistock Town Council meeting on February 2. (On October 20, the properties committee made a unanimous recommendation that the land should be valued and put on the market for disposal; one reason being that it is an unnecessary drain on the council's resources). The next full town council meeting on October 27 decided that a community consultation was necessary before any decision was taken.
The important question is if we do not make our point of view known on this issue we may lose this play area, which would be a great shame at this time when the Government is actively encouraging local authorities to provide children with safe play area to enable children to be more active.
Surely, at this current time when there is so much concern about the health and fitness of our children it is even more essential that this play area is preserved.
George Hunter
Orchard Close
Abbotsfield
Tavistock