When a Council wins official recognition in a national poll for doing a great job, then you would expect that council to be singing from its Town Hall steps. Not so in Luton as the Council will be trying to bury embarrassing bad news.
After a national poll by Fields in Trust, Wigmore Valley Park was not only voted Best Park in Luton
- But the also the best park in Bedfordshire
- AND it was a regional finalist for the East of England
A certificate of excellence is being sent to the Council
The park already has 2 independent Asset of Community Value orders put in place by neighbouring parish councils and has County Wildlife Status, so with this latest award most councils would be proud of their achievements – particularly as the site was once the town’s rubbish dump.
So are the Council shouting about this?
Well, not in Luton, it would seem.
The Council has a long disturbing history of ignoring residents’ needs for public open space, by building on public parks. In recent years 11 town parks have all been lost or greatly reduced with another one under threat. So with the loss of the 70 acre Wigmore Valley Park to proposed Airport expansion, and planning permission already granted to build on the park, Luton residents are being deprived of public parks – and that shames the Council. As Airport Chairman and Councillor Andy Malcolm has already stated, if the people of Luton want green space they should get in their cars and drive out of town.
