Bedlington residents campaign for better leisure facilities

Oct 2 2009 by Vicky Robson, The Journal

RESIDENTS in a Northumberland village are campaigning for better leisure facilities, claiming they have been left out of the loop by authorities.

The Friends of Gallagher Park group, in Bedlington, have submitted a planning application to build a BMX track for youngsters in the hope that it will pave the way for a future leisure centre.

The group formed last year with the aim of bringing a sports and social centre to Bedlington.

They were given a boost with a promise from Wansbeck Council that £500,000 it raised from the sale of Bedlingtonshire Golf Club would be spent on facilities in the town.

The club was bought by its 739 members in a historic deal last year and the campaigners say they were given hope that the funds would be used to build a leisure centre.

But when Northumberland County Council came into force as a unitary authority in April it would only pledge £500,000 for the Bedlington area as a whole.

And it has yet to decide how that money will be used.

Campaigner Larry Roberts said: “The unfairness of the situation in Bedlington is appalling.”