Frodsham Town Council has this week been considering the future of two council-owned pieces of land: Manley Road Copse and Marshlands.

In a full council meeting on Monday 23rd November, councillors discussed whether it would be advisable to 'dispose' of the two woodland areas, which have been 'neglected' in recent years.

Manley Road Copse

In 2017 Manley Road Copse suffered considerable damage at the hands of Storm Doris, after which many mature trees had to be felled.

Since then, maintenance works have been carried out in the copse when required, with Frodsham WI leading a tree-planting project there to mark the centenary of their Cheshire branch in 2019.

However, since the Storm Doris episode in the copse's history, it has been noted that "the long-term maintenance of the area needs to be considered," with town councillors suggesting the creation of a 'Friends of Manley Road Copse' group, similar in structure to the Hob Hey Wood Friends Group.

This idea was reiterated in Monday's council meeting, where joint president of the WI, Viven Shaw, also said: "Frodsham Town Council should be aware that they are the guardians of the land that they own, and they shouldn't be too short-sighted in selling it off for just a one-off gain.

"Lockdown has shown us that all this public land that we have is very important. The more places we have for people to walk to, the better it is for everybody.

"I know that [Manley Road Copse] is a little bit neglected at the moment but money is available." She then went on to suggest that with a little investment, the land could be made into a more attractive and welcoming space for people to enjoy.

"I hope that Frodsham Town Council, instead of putting their energies into selling off these wonderful assets will put their energies into making the most of what they have for the benefit and enjoyment of Frodsham residents, who are, after all, the people they represent."

Marshlands

The Marshlands area, which is situated adjacent to Frodsham Cricket Club behind The Bears Paw pub, proved to be a more contentious issue.

A Frodsham Town Council report states that: "Over recent years, due to its hidden location and lack of lighting, [Marshlands] has become an area for unwelcome activity and is no longer perceived as an attractive or safe place to visit."

Cllr Lord Pennington also suggested that the former Gasworks site is contaminated, and the council agreed to write to Cheshire West and Chester Council for confirmation of this.

Cllr Mallie Poulton said: "I'm quite willing to let us keep every piece of land, but not in the state that Marshlands is in. Keep it, but not in the same way that it is now."

He also suggested that a majority of Frodsham residents would not know where the woodland is if asked, meaning that any money spent on maintaining it would be wasted.

In response to this, Cllr Lucy Sumner argued: "Just because people don't refer to it as Marshlands, it doesn't necessary mean that they don't use it or know where it is."

Cllr Donna Critchley said: "Marshlands is very neglected. It could be revamped, but I think we need 'Friends of' groups to support this."

Cllr Judith Critchley added: "When the Council took on these pieces of land, we had enthusiastic councillors and residents that wanted to nurture them. We seem to have lost all of that now; the residents who were involved are now elderly and can't do it.

This emphasised the need to unite groups of people who would be willing to take care of both Manley Road Copse and Marshlands, investing time and energy in their future like the Hob Hey Wood Friends Group have with regards to Hob Hey Wood.

The proposal to consider the disposal of these pieces of land was therefore withdrawn, and it was agreed that the issue would be discussed at the next Amenities Committee meeting, who would look in detail at the maintenance requirements for each woodland area.