TOWN councillors are demanding the public are given their say into plans to close a popular footpath which runs next to Teesdale School, in Barnard Castle.
School officials say the closure is needed to improve pupil safety, stop people letting their dogs foul on playing fields and tackle the problem of broken glass and discarded alcohol cans.
However, Cllr Frank Harrison, chairman of the town council’s planning committee, said the closure, combined with an alternative proposed route running alongside The Hub, would lead people onto a narrow and dangerous footpath on the main A688 into Barnard Castle.
A report to committee members stated the plan to close the path had been proposed following discussions between Durham County Council’s access and rights of way team and the school.
“The proposals are considered to offer a reasonable compromise between public access and the legitimate concerns of the school,” added the report.
Cllr Harrison said: “I am not happy with this. A lot of people, including responsible dog owners, use that path, along with people going to work and going to the leisure centre. I strongly object to its closure.
“There is a new regime at the school and a lot of things are changing up there.”
Cllr John Blissett supported Cllr Harrison’s comments and called for the footpath to be retained. The planning committee supported Cllr Harrison’s recommendation for a public meeting and consultation to be organised about the proposals.
Teesdale School is now one of nine which make up the multi-academy North East Learning Trust (NELT).
A NELT spokeswoman said the proposals to alter the footpath around Teesdale School and adjoining sixth form campus had been put forward to solve “the very real issues” the current route presents the school on a daily basis.
“As it stands, the footpath gives the public access to our private playing fields surrounding the school, which presents us with several environmental problems, including broken glass, dog mess and discarded alcohol cans, each of which we find on a daily basis. Our main school gates need to be kept locked to prevent unauthorised access throughout the day.
“This means staff have to go through elaborate procedures to keep children safe if they are on the fields.”
She added: “This causes major difficulties if students need access to the school whilst on the field during lessons. At lunchtimes, the gates have to be opened to allow children access to the fields which again presents significant issues to ensure the routes are fully supervised at all times.
“In addition, the clearing of dog faeces is a major daily concern as sadly this is not being collected by dog owners. Altering the public footpath would secure the school site, improve the field environment and ease the significant logistical problems that we face every day.”
The planning committee’s views have been lodged with the county council and the issue is expected to determined by its highways committee at a future meeting.
