What are your views, or those of the organisation you represent, about the future of the Suffolk’s country parks and recreation sites?

Clare Country Park is a priceless recreational and heritage asset for Clare, St Edmundsbury and Suffolk alike.   It is also our town park, located very close to the centre, and contains important facilities for both children and adults.   It is an integrated part of our wider community, serving the 8,000 residents in the villages in the surrounding area and is a key asset in the economy of Clare.  Visitors are attracted to the Country Park and at the same time make use of the shops and services in Clare.  As a Key Service Centre its continued existence must be guaranteed.

Our expectation is simply that SCC should fulfill its existing obligation to maintain Clare Country Park in its present state and ensure that it does not fall into an unacceptable state.  SCC must guarantee that any future custodian continues the existing work without any reduction in standards. 

Question B

The ineptness of communications with the Town Council has been breath-taking, as has the lack of consideration for the local community.  In seeking to divest the Library, the Youth Club and the Country Park, SCC seems intent on removing a number of key services from this Key Service Centre.   This simply does not make sense.

There is no sensible "critical path" to which all subscribers can contribute; information provided has been inaccurate and poorly explained; Sites of differing make-up and style have been lumped together rather than each site being treated on its individual merit; Different information has come from separate SCC sources so the "hymn sheet" has not been standardised.

It is astonishing that SCC, which claims to be responsible for the Greenest County in England, has made such an ill-considered unilateral declaration about the divestment of the Park.   In withdrawing financial support, and declaring that it would be moth-balled if no-one else stepped forward, SCC has conflated the issue of divestment with that of the Park’s continued existence.  If SCC was not the appropriate agency to run the Park, then it should have determined who, REALISTICALLY, was.

The management of the Park is likely to prove complex.   We understand that there are a number of covenants on the land and buildings that carry specific responsibilities, as well as issues involved with managing the relationship with other stakeholders such as English Heritage and the Environment Agency.  The resources of Clare Town Council and the voluntary sector locally are already stretched and are unlikely to have the capacity and infrastructure necessary to guarantee the satisfactory management of such a Park on a sustainable basis.

The consultation questionnaire places responsibility on community groups to acquire or demonstrate strategic, operational and financial management of country parks.  Proposals are sought within timescales which are totally impractical.  SCC has run these parks for decades and yet no attempt has been made to give structured access to that expertise.  The questionnaire demonstrates SCC’s absolute abdication of responsibility. 

We are certain there were more productive, and effective, ways for SCC to achieve a satisfactory result than a unilateral declaration of divestment and withdrawal of funding.  

Question C

Are there any other questions the Scrutiny Committee should be asking Councillor Judy Terry, the Portfolio Holder for Greenest County, and country parks officers about how the council is managing the divestment of country parks?