Save Bertie Park Oxford

What Oxford City Council have said…

* OCC have twice said there’ll be another consultation before Bertie Park goes to planning. Now they say there won’t, because their plans haven’t changed.

* When notices went up around Bertie Park in 2024, they said the development did not follow the local plan:

Now they say it does.

* OCC say their drawings and plans are “only indicative”:

So we know it won’t look anything like this! But they want to consult us only AFTER they have planning permission. This isn’t honest. The last time they consulted us, they talked to primary-age kids, then recommended equipment for toddlers.

* OCC say they are now working with the Environment Agency to solve problems. They say Bertie will go to planning committee in the Autumn. Well, it is already Autumn. But we’re still at it! Just treading water …

Why everyone in Oxford should care about Bertie Park

OCC are working on their new “2042” local plan. They want to lump recreation grounds in with “Green Infrastructure.” Nature is the priority. The “potential for recreation and movement should also be considered” … Green Infrastructure does not have to be “overly designed or dominated by fixed equipment”… It could have “wild areas and facilities that encourage engagement with nature and free-play.”

We all know that government guidance says this:

National Policy Planning Framework section 104

The plan says constructors who want to build on Green Infrastructure should consider “how any loss can be mitigated, especially if this is located in an area which already suffers from a deficit.” OCC say that Bertie Park is needed. But they want to build 31 homes. They admit there will be nowhere for free play, but insist that any loss will be “fully compensated for” in less than 20% of the current recreation ground. If they can do this to Bertie Park, they can do this to any recreation ground in Oxford.

The government’s National Planning Policy Framework protects bats. Why don’t we protect children too? (MP Natalie Elphicke). It is right to build a city that is resilient to climate change so that our children have a future, but this should not be done at the expense of their childhood. Read our response to OCC’s consultation on its 2042 proposals here.

Bertie Park Update

The only time we find out anything new is when we talk to council. So that’s what we did! (Full version on OCC’s youtube channel)

Why we couldn’t challenge
appropriation

Why the bridge makes no sense!
(Cllr Hollingsworth continues to ignore proceedings)

3 Questions

Not on the plan!

What OCC Councillor Chapman said (full version here):

OX Place will address ALL problems raised by the Environment Agency.
THEN there will be another formal planning consultation.
The planning application will be “discussed” in the autumn.
There will be no consultation on play equipment until after an award of planning permission.

A reminder: the only time OCC asked about play equipment, they questioned school-age children, but specified stuff for toddlers.

Should OCC build on Bertie Park?

Anna Railton says that Bertie Park will to go planning committee under the existing local plan. But OCC are consulting on the new ‘2042’ local plan NOW. You and any other member of your family can comment before August 8th. A short consultation only lists the sites, the long one click here lets you comment on them. Sandy Lane is another Oxford recreation ground under threat. Section 10 looks like this:

It’s OK if you don’t want to do any other sections!

The 2042 local plan aims “to provide adequate … leisure and recreation opportunities and make these readily accessible for all.” But here is the new site assessment form for Bertie Park. It doesn’t include the bank of Redbridge Stream, so the site is now smaller. No nature trail. No new bridge.

Bertie Park consists of a recreation ground, playground and MUGA. Only the playground and MUGA are to be replaced. They don’t say where, or how. Bertie Park is still a recreation ground. Government policy says that you cannot build on a recreation ground unless it is replaced by equivalent or better.

Below is a list of consultations for the 2042 plan:

Tuesday 17 July, 11am to 12.30pm	Online – please fill in the online form for the 17 July session to register your interest.
Sunday 20 July, 9.15am to midday	South Oxford Farmers Market
Wednesday 23 July, 10.45am to 2.45pm	Town Hall, Long Room
Tuesday 29 July, 5pm to 6.30pm	Online – please fill in the online form for the 29 July session to register your interest.

Bertie Park development WILL increase flood risk for Hinksey Park

Oxford City council want to shrink Bertie Park recreation ground to 20% of its current size.

To compensate, they want to make a 250m footpath on an area not safe for unaccompanied children. And build a new bridge to access it.

Oxford City Council have now had 5 letters from the Environment Agency, saying their plans for a new bridge will “increase the risk of flooding both onsite and elsewhere.” But the council is not listening. Latest EA letter here.

The Environment Agency say that their latest letter prevents OCC “from issuing planning permission without first referring the application to the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government… This process must be followed unless we are able to withdraw our objection to you in writing. A failure to follow this statutory process could render any decision unlawful, and the resultant permission vulnerable to legal challenge.”

Hmm. Do Oxford City Council have a problem?

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Music for Bertie 26 April 2025

At our first fundraiser, music was provided by Sue Smith & Phil Freizinger, Double J Bangra and Trip Hazard, with busking by Tali. Tesco donated prizes for a raffle. Other games included guess the number of balloons in the car, knock down tins and find the real egg. Light refreshments included cakes made by Katy and Michael, and contributions from Baweja Superstore and the Vaults and Garden Cafe. We raised nearly £260. If you are able to contribute, our gofundme is here.

A small taster of the music

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Music for Bertie

Oxford city council do not yet have planning permission to build on Bertie Park. They say Bertie could go to planning committee this Autumn at the earliest. Anna Railton says that the decision could go either way. If they finally give planning permission, we will appeal. We launch our fundraising for legal costs on the 26th April; starting with an Easter Egg hunt on Bertie Park, then music and games at St Lukes.

(If OCC eventually decide not to build on Bertie, all money raised will be spent on improvements to the park)

New Look for Bertie Park!

OCC have finally cleaned the playground surface on Bertie Park. It took 2 years of complaints (and a threat to do it ourselves). Well worth the wait!

So a reminder of why Bertie Park is well worth a visit:

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We are still at it!

Bertie Park is still busy. OCC have nearly finished cleaning the surface, so we will have a new look soon. The photograph below shows spring on the park:

Last October, Oxford City council appropriated the land on Bertie Park. This means that IF OCC get planning permission, they can build on Bertie. But they DON’T actually have planning permission.

Please let us know if you could put a sign outside your house!

Lawyers advised us that it would be better to challenge planning permission than appropriation. We have no idea when Bertie Park will go to planning committee. We have been waiting for well over a year. Anna Railton says that it could go either way. But if Oxford City Council do decide to give planning permission, we WILL challenge it in court.

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Joy Riding in North Hinksey

A small bridge joins Bertie Park Recreation Ground to land behind Wytham Street. Oxford City Council call this land the “Cold Harbour Nature Area”. Because it is not over-looked, it was in the past used for joy-riding. When Wytham Street residents complained about this, Oxford City Council installed bars on the entrance to the bridge so that bikes could no longer cross.

OCC now think that what our community really needs, more than a proper recreation ground, is better access to the “Cold Harbour Nature Area.” In order to do this, they want to fence off 70% of the Nature Area, and build a huge bridge to give better access to a 250m footpath/race track on the remaining 30%.

It is not clear whether they will also provide Wytham Street residents with ear-plugs.