Report on Play Area behind the Field

Audlem Parish Council have received the following report from Cheshire East regarding the area between the back of the playing field next to the public car park and the Shroppie Fly. Due to safety concerns for the children that use it the Councillors are asking for it to be published online in the hope that parents will see it.

Constructed play area at the rear of playing field, Cheshire Street, Audlem

The ground conditions are currently poor and potentially dangerous. Local residents have constructed a bike track on the eastern side of the site, with extensive groundworks include deep ditches up to 2m deep, sheer drops with leadup ramps, steep embankments and drainage trenches. The track area cuts across an access route used by the public to access the pub and canal. The area is very difficult to walk on, even for the visiting inspector wearing high ankle, high traction boots. The comment about the ground conditions is an opinion by the visiting tree inspector and not a risk assessment as I am not qualified to comment on such matters; However, I am qualified to explain the works have created a serious risk to members of the public in terms of tree safety.

The works have dug through the root plates of several very large trees causing root heave and stem leans with the potential for entire tree failure into the open space, compacted the root plates of others causing internal dysfunctions leading to poor crown health and decline: increasing the potential for limb failure, pruning works have been undertaken to a very poor standard to clear the bike routes causing internal disfunction and some trees have extensive bark wounds from collisions and vandalism, up to bark stripping the entire base of a tree up to chest height. Already several trees have been removed and reduced to avoid failure at cost to the taxpayer, generating complaints. More tree works will need be carried out now the stability and health of them has been impacted and more will have to be removed until the works are stopped & ground conditions remediated, or every tree is eventually lost to inaction.

Ansa Environmental Tree team will continue to maintain Trees in this open space as originally instructed but in the strongest possible terms I recommend this site be inspected and assessed to fix the damage