THE county council has said the controversial fences put up across Helmshore Primary School’s playing fields are open to public comment.

Access to the public through the fields has been disputed by two campaign groups for eight years. Temporary fences have been put up to allow three paths to let people access the area without accessing the school area.

County Coun Marcus Johnstone, cabinet member for environment, planning and cultural services, said: “The issue at the heart of this all along has been the safety and security of pupils attending a school where a public footpath ran through the playing field.

“The recent counter-proposal was fully considered and a “The only work carried out since then has been to enable access to the footpath where it meets a road, which took just a few minutes.

“The situation, while not perfect, protects the security of the school and avoids an expensive diversion or losing a substantial part of the school grounds.

“There will now be a period of time for everyone to assess the current situation and see how well it works."