OXENHOPE residents concerned about the future of the village’s Rose Garden have been reassured their views will now form part of ongoing alterations and improvements.

Members of the recently-formed Friends of Oxenhope Rose Garden attended the latest meeting of Oxenhope Parish Council.

They had previously complained that they and other people living near the Rose Garden had not been consulted on a project to radically transform the public green space, at the junction of Station Road and Hebden Bridge Road.

The land has been owned by Bradford Council but Oxenhope Parish Council is working on taking over its management.

Residents had initially spoken out after a large quantity of shrubs and some trees were cleared out, as part of the parish council’s improvement scheme.

Parish council chairman Cllr Ken Eastwood declared an interest in this item so left the room for almost all of the discussion.

Newly-appointed vice chairman Cllr Robert Goulding told the meeting: “There’s a general acknowledgement that perhaps we were heading off in slightly the wrong direction.

“I’m happy to take that on board and move forward in a spirit of compromise. The bigger picture is that this Rose Garden has belonged to Bradford Council, but the parish council undertook to take it over on the basis of a long-term lease. We got that bit right.

“But I think we acknowledge that perhaps we were then overambitious. There is now a commitment to work more closely with people.”

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Resident Roger Smales said locals, including people living closest to the garden in West Drive, had not known what the council’s intentions were until about a month ago. But he said he was now pleased with a revised plan for its future, which was summarised by Cllr Goulding and agreed to in principle by the parish council.

Mr Smales said residents supported the idea of planting wild flowers and grasses around the edges of the garden, putting other plants and possibly rose bushes in the central beds, planting more cherry trees and using the top part of the garden for a community herb garden.

Another resident, Stuart Taylor, said he had not been able to find planning permission for the parish council’s removal of a sycamore tree, willow and mature holly from the Rose Garden.