Stoke Lodge: battle isn’t over

CAMPAIGNERS who won Village Green status for the parkland at Stoke Lodge are warning that their fight is not over.

The We Love Stoke Lodge group is raising funds for a court battle next year with Cotham School over the open space.

It says the school, which leases the site from Bristol City Council for games but has stopped using it following the ruling last year, will go to the High Court in January to overturn the Village Green status.

“We all know what that would mean: the fence would go back up, the gates would be locked and ‘public access’ would mean trudging around the narrow and dangerous perimeter walkways. Wildlife, trees and open public access are all at risk,” WLSL says on its website.

The group is not opposed to the school’s use of Stoke Lodge parkland but opposes fencing it off or development such as artificial pitches or parking because this would be detrimental to shared use of the village green.