Community would have raised cash to save bridge (From Warrington Guardian)

Community would have raised cash to save bridge

ARE the people of Eccleston expected to swallow the reasons given for the removal of the footbridge (Bridge scrapped after safety fear, Star June 10)?

I thought that churches wanted to work with the communities they are supposed to serve?

Local councillors were apparently unaware of a problem and likewise the community. Perhaps if the church had consulted with us local residents, the money for repairs could have been raised. The removal of this bridge is just another stage in the loss of the oldest part of Eccleston. I hope that this was a legal action as it formed part of what is surely a public right of way from the field and alongside the church hall as it has been used for 50 years that I know of.

The church's plans for redevelopment will no doubt make an overall profit for the Church of England which will probably not be spent on the local community in Eccleston. I'm sure these plans would not be acceptable in a leafy Oxfordshire village. Will development in Eccleston only stop when every green space is covered in houses and tarmac?

Perhaps it's time we followed the example of our neighbours in Wigan and get together a community action group.

ECCLESTON Resident (name and address supplied).