Sports stars of future are sure of a safe place to play
NEARLY 30 outdoor areas around Glasgow have been given special status to protect them for future generations.
As part of a Commonwealth Games legacy project, 27 greenspaces have been secured under a legal agreement for leisure.
The arrangement with the council means sites such as Govanhill Park and Broomhouse Park will only be used as public playing fields, open spaces, parks or for recreation, leisure or sporting use.
Leader of Glasgow City Council, Councillor Frank McAveety, and Brian Samson, chairman of Fields in Trust Scotland, a charity that safeguards greenspaces, visited Queens Park Community Tennis Club, one of the protected sites, to see how future generations are making full use of the outdoor space.
Mr McAveety said: “It’s widely acknowledged that having access to outdoor space and undertaking some level of activity has numerous mental and physical benefits for individuals and families.
“We were delighted to take part in this scheme .
“And of course it’s at ‘Come and Try’ sessions like this tennis one in Queens Park that encourages young people to stay fit and active and where a passion for sport could help them develop into the sporting champions of tomorrow.”
The Queen Elizabeth Fields Challenge is Fields in Trust’s UKwide programme to protect outdoor recreation spaces in celebration of the Queens Diamond Jubilee, London Olympics and Paralympic Games and closes with the Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games.
Following due diligence and legal process the 27 sites are being given a Fields in Trust designation.
In the event that the council wished to change the use of a site, to sell, or build upon a site, Fields in Trust must give their consent.
In addition if the council want- ed to remove an area from the Fields in Trust scheme, an alternative site must be added to the list in substitution.
Brian Samson said: “Glasgow City Council is leading the way by protecting forever such a significant proportion of its public green spaces with Fields in Trust. At a time when there is pressure on land for housing and commercial development we applaud the decision to safeguard recreational space for future generations.”
The sites in the scheme cover some well-known parks in the city including Cathkin Braes, Rosshall Park and Glasgow Green but also includes lesser known sites such as Riccarton Street Park in Govanhill, Binghams Pond off Great Western Road, Milton Park and Ashtree Park near Pollokshaws.