Update: College Fields in Madeley

Over the past week, many residents have contacted me about proposals to install fencing around College Fields, the field next to Madeley School.

The field forms part of the school estate and has been used informally by the wider community for many years. Recent instructions for fencing to be installed would restrict public access, which has caused significant concern locally given the long-standing community use of the land.

Last Friday, during my constituency surgery, I met with members of Madeley Parish Council to discuss the issue and to hear directly their concerns, particularly around consultation, communication and the future of this much-used green space.

With members of Madeley Parish Council during my recent advice surgery in Madeley (12 December 2025)

Following that meeting, I raised the issue with Staffordshire County Council.

I have since received a response from the Cabinet Member for Education and SEND, Cllr Janet Higgins.

Find her full response below:

I have received a lot of correspondence regarding College Fields in Madeley and the repairing of fences around this field. I appreciate you may be getting constituent enquires on this issue so I just wanted to outline Staffordshire County Council’s position on this. This piece of land is a detached playing field for the school and should be out of bounds to anyone but the school. When the school became an academy school several years ago, there was a perimeter fence in place, but this had not been maintained. Under the terms of the lease, the Academy or Academy Trust is under an obligation to keep the perimeter fence in good order. This does not just apply to this field, but to all school fields as playing fields are protected and subject to government regulations. We are clear that this land is leased to the school, and should be used for school purposes. The perimeter fence has not been maintained for a few years, so the school has set about rectifying this and installing a new fence. As a detached playing field, there is no permitted right of access to the community. We are aware of the village green application submitted by the Parish Council and have responded with our objection to this measure on a similar basis. Both SCC and the Academy have a legal and moral duty to safeguard students when using the land by ensuring a safe and secure environment for their education and well-being. Granting village green status to the land would severely compromise these safeguarding responsibilities. I hope this clarifies this issue, and our position as a County Council.

I know how strongly many people in Madeley feel about College Fields and the way this situation has been handled. I am continuing to work closely with Madeley Parish Council, and I will keep pressing Staffordshire County Council for answers, clarity, accountability and common sense.