Like councillors Rooney and McGinty, the Save Posties Park campaigners urge everyone to express their views. That is why we have put up posters, and delivered flyers, to as many homes as we can. We politely requested permission to put up posters in WDC premises, but were (equally politely, but firmly), declined this request, on the grounds that the wording on our posters and flyers ‘express bias’. Of course they express bias, we want to Save Posties Park! Until the publication of the final version of the WDC consultation document, WDC also expressed bias, in favour of building on Posties Park, in their Educational Services Committee papers of May 15 and September 11.

We accept that in the final version of the consultation document, consultees are ‘invited to indicate whether they are in favour of constructing the school on the existing site of on Posties Park’ giving reasons for their opinion. We would strongly suggest that these reasons should be based, as we have already indicated, on the fact that any substantial building on Posties Park would be a ‘significant departure from the Local Plan’, which is adopted council policy and should not be ignored. The council must also take into consideration the extreme and serious potential consequences for health and safety of school children and other pedestrians on Woodyard Road and on the footbridge, general environmental and landscape degradation, noise, possible toxic contamination and pollution of the site, traffic management problems etc. etc. Dare I suggest that not the least of these consequences might be continued public discontent if Posties Park is built on, and which might well be reflected in the next local elections.......?

Rose Harvie, secretary, Silverton and Overtoun Community Council