Ashton Park could see a colourful community garden planted up Pic: Tony Worrall

A bowling green at a Preston park could be turned into a community garden.

Proposals are being drawn up for one of Ashton Parks greens to be dug up and become home to all sorts of fruit and vegetables.

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The garden would be managed by the Preston Environmental Forum and be a place to train volunteers.

One bowling green would still remain available in the park.

The area picked for the community garden was the former kitchen garden of the grade II listed Ashton House.

Ashton House’s former kitchen garden could return Pic: Tony Worrall

Steve Dolby from Preston Environmental Forum said: “The members and committee of Preston Environmental Forum welcome the announcement by Preston City Council.

“Having a ‘headquarters’ will enable us to move forward and develop as an organisation. We will be able to provide guidance and support to all the community environmental groups in Preston.

“Development of this site into the Preston Environmental Forum base will allow us to provide more training and voluntary opportunities, which can only be beneficial to the City of Preston as a whole.

“We look forward to the challenge of establishing this site over the next few years and providing further support for all environmental groups in Preston.”

The garden would cost £30,000 to set up with the funding coming from the Lancashire Environmental Forum if the application was successful.

Park users are being asked to comment on the consultation which is on the Project Dirt website and runs until Thursday 7 August.

Alison Burrow, from Friends of Ashton Park, said: “As a Friends group we have to look at ways to improve the park to encourage more park users and to work with Preston City Council and other partners to deliver the best for our community.

“We are pleased to support this new project which will offer the opportunity for young and old to work together developing a new community garden with the help of PEF.”

Councillor Robert Boswell, Cabinet Member for Community and Environment said: “We welcome the news of this consultation and are excited about the possibility of the bowling green being transformed into a community garden and we are interested in feedback from the local community.

“If there is support for the idea then bids for external funding can be made by Preston Environmental Forum to set up the new community garden. There is significant demand in Preston for community food growing; projects such as this proposal bring considerable benefits to people and the environment.”

What do you think? A good use of park space? Should the bowling green stay? Let us know in the comments below