Overgrown shrubs on Walker Lane

The owner of Preston North End’s firm will receive a bill from Lancashire County Council for chopping back overgrown hedges on its new training complex site.

The Council has trimmed the shrubs around the former Ingol Golf Course and says it will be getting in contact PNE’s owner Trevor Hemmings to recover the cost.

Footpaths had been taken over by greenery, making it dangerous for both pedestrians and motorists.

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The site has not seen any significant work start as of yet and residents have already raised concerns about the state of which the land has been left.

Lancashire County Councillor for the Preston West Division, Cllr John Potter, informed the council about his concerns of the overgrowing hedges.

He said: “The Walker Lane bushes that have already cut back were causing problems for motorists regarding visibility. The Lightfoot Lane one is making pedestrians walk on the road because the foliage is covering the majority.

“It’s made worse the fact that the council tax payer is having to do the work for them. And now the elderly residents at Hollybank home on Boys Lane are struggling to get over the railway bridge because the narrow pavement is getting impassible because of the overgrown hedges.

“Big claims were made when the controversial housing planning applications were put in for the former Ingol Golf Course but they are failing to do the very basic minimum to maintain their land.”

Read more: Preston North End deny new training ground plan is being scrapped

Rob Wilson, highways manager for Lancashire County Council, said: “The overhanging shrubs close to Ingol Golf Course are all on private land.

“We’ve cut the shrubs back to remove the danger to vehicles and pedestrians. We’ll be contacting the land owner to recover the costs for this work.”

Lancashire County Council said it tried to contact PNE to do the work before cutting the hedges itself.

Preston North End Football Club denied knowledge of the overgrown hedges.

A spokesperson said: “We can’t give a comment about something we know nothing about.”

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Do you live in the area? What do you think about the new training ground site? Let us know in the comments below