Residents of a small village in rural North Yorkshire have successfully banded together to save their community park from sale.
North Yorkshire Council approved a bid from a community group started by villagers which wanted to list North Cowton Recreational Grounds as an asset of community value (ACV).
The authority had previously revealed plans to sell part of the park so it could become private gardens.
However, after learning about the proposed plans through an advert in a local newspaper, a group of 30 locals sprung into action.
Protect Our Park North Cowton started by organising meetings, and then launched a survey and posted flyers to local homes in order to raise awareness of the situation.
Heather Minto, a member of the group, stressed the importance of having green spaces which can be enjoyed by the whole village, and said she was “proud” of what they had achieved.
Ms Minto added: “We are a small, rural but tightly knit and caring community whose residents, old and young, rely on the park.
“It is one of the only social and recreational spaces in our village.”
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North Yorkshire Council approved a bid from a community group to list North Cowton Recreational Grounds as an asset of community value
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The green space includes a play area, football pitch, tennis court and meadow, and regularly hosts community activities, such as a weekly village football match.
Ms Minto said she was “grateful to all” those who shared how important the park was to them as nearly 100 people responded to the request for feedback.
The local North and South Cowton Community Primary School attested that the park is often used for PE classes as the school has limited space.
Nine-year-old Francis, who helped to deliver flyers about the campaign, said: “The park is the only place in the village that the community can go to hang out and it is also our school playing field.”
A spokesman for North Yorkshire Council said: “The land was nominated by Protect Our park North Cowton as an ACV.
“After it was found to have met the criteria, the land was granted that status for the next five years.”
According to application criteria, the register recognises buildings or land that “furthers the social wellbeing or social interests of the local community”.
This means the community will be given the opportunity to submit a bid to buy the land if the owner, North Yorkshire Council, wants to sell.