Park ranger scheme ‘not viable’ for Huncoat land
PROPOSALS to create a ‘park ranger’ volunteer scheme to protect against anti-social behaviour have been rejected by council bosses as ‘unviable’.
Huncoat councillor Eamonn Higgins had called on Hyndburn council to introduce ‘park and open spaces rangers’ to combat a spate of anti-social behaviour.
However, portfolio holder for Education, Leisure and Arts, councillor Ken Moss said that the personal risk to volunteers being ‘targeted’ meant the scheme would not be pursued by the council.
In a letter Coun Higgins urged that rangers be introduced around Huncoat and Peel Park after he witnessed a spate of vandalism.
Coun Higgins said: “The pit top in Huncoat, Huncoat trail, and the coppice park and woodland are blighted by uncontrolled dog fouling, anti-social behaviour, motorcycles, littering and vandalism.
“In one week I witnessed vandalism to park benches, massive littering, a fight, youths trying do damage a defibrillator, youths on motorbikes scrambling - who almost knocked a child down - unauthorised camping and also using camp fires, unchallenged dog fouling.
“All this was at Peel Park and the coppice woodland.”
Coun Higgins had proposed that volunteers could be trained by councillors, police and dog wardens to monitor late-night behaviour.
But Coun Moss said: “We have sat down and looked at having an old park ranger style of using volunteers to help improve the parks, but it’s not going to be viable as a long term project.
“It’s more a question of putting individuals at risk. It opens up the possibility that individuals would be targeted by people who don’t like what they were doing, although they were trying to make the park better.”
Coun Moss added: “We don’t have the money in the council to fund our own rangers so we are having to find novel ways of improving things without spending.
“This is something that we work closely with the police on, to tackle anti-social behaviour in parks especially during lighter hours.”
The installation of specialist ‘combination’ gates is being considered by council officers as a deterrent against motorbike nuisance at Peel Park to protect the tranquillity of the natural space.
FREE Walks will be taking place to explore local nature.
Huncoat Community Forum have organised a Jubilee walk on Sunday, August 21 starting up Haworth Art Gallery at 1.15pm.
Two ‘bat and fungi’ walks will also take place in early autumn.