CREATING a car park at a village play area would be too complicated to achieve, according to parish leaders.

Although they agree that parking is an issue in Davenham, parish councillors say there are almost insurmountable difficulties in accessing Laburnum Road field.

The council has been sent a letter asking if people coming from outside the village can park on the hardstanding at the play area, but councillors say this difficult because Laburnum Road itself is an unadopted road.

Cllr Arthur Wood said: "When the bowling club wanted to use the hardstanding that was against what had been agreed and understood about the right of access – that's why it was limited to special events and, in particular, for disabled people.

"The hardstanding is really a maintenance area.

"If we pushed for that to be a public area there would be all sorts of issues with residents.

"How many vehicles would come and go to use the hardstanding?"

Laburnum Road is owned and maintained by residents and businesses that front on to it and the parish council has access rights to reach its field.

Cllr wood added: "Encouraging people to drive up and down the road to park their cars? I would be absolutely livid at the suggestion to be honest if I've paid for it to be resurfaced and people are using the road."

But chairman Cllr Katie Mattinson argued that the possibility should be explored.

"I have mixed views on this," she said.

"Coming from the other side of the village where do you park?

"You can't park in London Road because cars are too fast and frequent – it's dangerous for children.

"You can't park in Church Street because there's nowhere to park.

"I don't think it would be that bad an idea, particularly with parking problems in the village."

Cllr Wood said: "We did look at the possibility of having the road adopted, that would have taken the load off the residents, but the highways authority said you can't do that unless you have the ability to turn round at the end of the road.

"A turning head would have taken all the top end of the site up and it was out of the question."

The council agreed that it did not currently have an appetite to open the area up as a car park because it was such a complicated situation.