In attendance:
Tony Phillips (chair), 4 Fovant Parish Councillors, one County Councillor and 11 members of the public.
Chair gave an overview and history of Footpath 20 which runs through the garden of the property, Ashbrook, Tisbury Road, including details from the County extinguishment notice now received. This included the legal context and informing the meeting that currently extinguishment notice was in the 28-day consultation period with a cut off 26th January 2026.
The chair then invited presentations from the floor.
Two members of the public were in favour of the extinguishment and cited concerns about pedestrian safety onto the Dinton Road with specific concern when cars were parked next to the Village Hall, potentially obscuring vision, excessive speeds of cars on the road and worries about the silent nature of electric cars.
One member of the public voiced concern that the footpath had been closed for some time and was uncertain whether it was really needed.
Another member of the public voiced that he and other children had used the footpath before it was closed off by the first owner of Ashbrook.
One member of the public said if the pathway was open to use, they could use it as they had concerns about the junction at the village hall due to vehicular damage to the monument.
Another member of the public agreed that they wanted to use it and wanted the footpath opened as walking around the Village Hall is dangerous to pedestrians and in general was against the principle of closing village footpaths. The safety concerns were echoed by the next member of the public to speak, who again was concerned about a precedent of closure being set.
The last member of the public to speak was in favour of preserving the footpath and managing any identified safety issues.
The County Councillor was the last to speak and gave the meeting an overview of the expected process.
Two forms were set out for residents to sign if they wished.
- Designated for not objecting to the Extinguishment:
Two members of the public signed in favour of the extinguishment going ahead.
- Designated for objecting to the Extinguishment.
Twelve members of the public signed objecting to the extinguishment going ahead.
One further letter was received from a resident objecting to the extinguishment.
Meeting concluded at 18:50 with members of the public thanked for their time.
A further poll on the Fovant Parish Council website run from the 7th January 2025 to 14th January 2025 elicited 36 votes, 28 voters (78%) wanted Footpath 20 reinstated, 8 votes (22%) wanted footpath 20 extinguished.