'Action time' call after council apologises over £550,000 Shrewsbury land sale

During a heated meeting at Theatre Severn on Wednesday evening, Shrewsbury Town Council apologised "unreservedly" for selling part of Greenfields Recreation Ground for housing in 2017, and vowed to help return it to the community.

The apology came as a surprise to campaigners from Greenfields Community Group, who have been battling to save the land for several years and earned a date at the Supreme Court this December.

Dr Peter Day, who is spearheading the challenge, said the council is now "making the right noises" over the issue, after several councillors spoke up to endorse the collective apology.

He said: "I think that's what should have happened. I think it is the correct thing to do. The council had not accepted what they had done and what's gone on. It is now clear and obvious that a mistake has been made.

"The council are making the right noises and have come to the right conclusion here. It's a start, but putting it right is going to be the critical thing now. There are still questions to be answered."

The land was sold to CSE Developments for 15 homes to be built, however an independent inquiry found the site is designated for community use.

At its next meeting on June 27, the council will discuss how the land can be returned to public ownership and made available as a public amenity, establish a process of mediation, and seek an appropriate process for dealing with inadequacies in its polices.

Dr Day added: "It's action time now. One would hope that there will be some communication with the group on what is going to take place. The council hasn't reached out to us in the full five years we've been doing this."

Michael Redfern QC, who was commissioned by Shrewsbury Town Council to carry out an independent inquiry into the sale, implored the community group to consider mediation and try to come to an agreement to avoid "huge" legal bills.

When giving his remarks, he described feeling "a temperature" from the community group.

Dr Day said: "He made a lot of comments about the community group, when he was brought in to investigate the council, not us. It did feel like he was telling us off on certain levels. People didn't respond very well to that."

Town council leader Alan Mosley said: "I am proud of the very significant progress the council has made over the last seven to eight years in providing amenities, services and representation for residents throughout Shrewsbury. However, the Redfern Report confirms that we made serious mistakes in our evaluation of the land which were compounded over time by inadequate communication and consultation.

"The events exposed in the report are a blot on an otherwise excellent record and we must right the wrongs in our performance.

"We are starting that process by unreservedly apologising to local residents, the community group and the wider Shrewsbury community for the errors made and the lack of communication.

"We have resolved to find means of returning the land to our ownership and restoring it as a public amenity and to seek resolution though mediation with all parties involved. We will also review our policy and procedures to ensure that they incorporate advice in the report and are fit for purpose.

"We will also seek expert advice in an internal inquiry around accountability and performance to ensure such issues can never occur again.

"The meeting was attended by a large number of residents who heard the report and its findings and I hope appreciated that we have accepted it in full in an open, honest and transparent manner and will in turn accept our apology and join us in ensuring a satisfactory outcome.”