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RESOLVED
 
(i)            
The Director of Communities in consultation with the Cabinet Member
for Leisure and Culture to work with Fields in Trust to assess the
viability of placing Horsham Park into trust under the Fields in
Trust scheme.

 
(ii)           
That a further report be developed for consideration by Cabinet
with a final proposal, including the Deed of Dedication if
appropriate.
 
REASON
 
To protect Horsham Park as a public open space
in perpetuity.
 
ALTERNATIVE OPTIONS CONSIDERED BUT REJECTED AS
IDENTIFIED IN THE REPORT
 
Various alternative courses of action have
been considered, as summarised below: Do Nothing:

-       
For the period since the park was established, Horsham District
Council and its predecessors have managed the site in line with the
requirement to “to keep and preserve the open space for the
benefit, enjoyment and recreation of the Town and Parish of Horsham
forever.”
 

-       
That said, over the last 50 years, there have been developments in
the park, such the Rec Rooms, Pavilions in the Park, car parks etc,
and the concern of the Friends of Horsham Park is around whether
the park continues to be ‘nibbled in to’. The current
approach to the management of the park does not give the confidence
to community groups that the site is protected in perpetuity.
 
HDC Policy to Protect the Park
 

-       
Consideration was given to a Council decision to explicitly protect
the park in line with the FIT standards, but retaining all
authority for decision making at Council level.  Ultimately, any Council policy can be reversed, so
this would not meet the standards required.
 
Other Options for protection of the Park:
 

-       
It is possible that the Park can be protected by other means, for
example, by putting the Park into its own charitable trust, by
establishing that the park is a village green or by protecting the
Park through the planning system by designating it as a Local Green
Space.
 

-       
The Council’s property and commercial lawyers are presently
reviewing alternative means of protection and, therefore, owing to
the legal complexity associated with different options, it would be
premature to comment on the viability of any alternative schemes at
this juncture.