4:20pm Sunday 7th March 2010
By Peter Magill
PENDLE has been left without any park keepers after the last remaining worker got a new job.
Critics blamed Pendle Council for a controversial series of changes to the way parks are managed.
Council bosses said they were trying to find replacements as a matter of priority, but denied their shake-up had caused the problems.
Colne’s park keeper Matt White is the latest to hand in his notice, the last of three in the borough to quit.
It comes as their roles were being changed to ‘park ranger’ with more responsibilities.
One post has also been axed to help fund a new five-strong team of enforcement officers, employed to hand out fines for littering, fly-tipping and dog fouling.
Jerry Stanford, chairman of Pendle’s parks forum, said: “It is not just about losing these three people, it is about losing a whole service.
“The police have expressed their concern at the local community safety partnership meetings, as they have lost a valuable source of information and security.”
Mr Stanford said the parks would be unable to participate in Pendle’s popular walking festival without the co-operation of the keepers.
And the nature education programme, conducted in local schools and arranged by the staff, would also suffer as a result of the losses.
He told a meeting of the Colne area committee that the Friends of Alkincoats Park group was considering disbanding at its next meeting.
This would result in the loss of the park’s ‘green flag’ status, as places without friends groups did not qualify, he added.
Mr Stanford said other parks groups were also considering their future, in light of the decision to introduce rangers.
Coun Tony Greaves said the three park keepers, all graduates, had probably left the service to advance their careers.
Mr White is now beginning a new job with the Pendle-based Environmental Action Group.
The Pendle cabinet member added: “We do not believe that the decision that was taken by the council following the review should have resulted in the collapse of the service and the departure of all the park keepers.”
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