Campaigners plan to mount a legal challenge against a council as they look to save a beloved park from development.

New Hinksey Playground in Bertie Place - known locally as Bertie Park – has been earmarked for 30 homes or more by Oxford City Council.

But the organiser of the Save Bertie Park campaign claims the authority's plan is not legal and hopes to bring the matter to a judicial review.

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Kaddy Beck said she and other campaigners were being advised by a lawyer as they prepare to launch this legal challenge in the new year.

Oxford Mail: Campaigners from Save Bertie Park protest outside Oxford Town Hall, the HQ of Oxford City Council, in 2021Campaigners from Save Bertie Park protest outside Oxford Town Hall, the HQ of Oxford City Council, in 2021

She said: “It’s a good park. It’s in the centre of our community. It’s the only community facility that we have that’s not Tesco.

“We have nothing else.

“We have good reason to believe it is not legal to develop here.”

A city council spokesman insisted the plans met residents’ needs, replaced the play facilities, and catered for teenagers.

The council, which owns the park off Abingdon Road, has allocated the site for a minimum of 30 homes in the draft Oxford Local Plan 2040.

This document, which sets out where the council wants future development to take place, has been approved by the cabinet and will end public consultation on January 5.

In it, Bertie Park is described as “suitable for residential development” as its function can be replaced “partially within the site and partially elsewhere in the local area”.

Oxford Mail: Save Bertie Park! Plans for park to be moved to a new wasteland and residentÕs are not happy. 09/03/2021 Picture by Ed Nix

The council’s housing company OX Place has already lodged a planning application for 31 new homes at the site.

But Ms Beck said the council had given no detail on how the recreation ground would be re-provided.

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She argued the council had broken government planning policies, which state that a replacement park should be equivalent or better and in a suitable location.

“It’s really important to have that sort of facility and it makes a huge difference to people’s lives,” she said.

“The northern end of the ward has quite a lot of stuff.

"The council says we can walk over there, but they don’t understand that the park is the first place you can go to on your own when you’re a kid.

"There are often much more kids there than adults.”

A city council spokesman said: “The Bertie Place policy makes a cross-reference to Policy G1, which says that reprovision of green spaces must be to the same standard or higher.

“The details within the Bertie Place policy are site specific, so make reference to the importance of meeting local needs, replacing play facilities, and ensuring teenagers are catered for.”

Over the summer, the council dug up parts of the children's play area for investigations related to the proposed development.

Ms Beck complained and said the council should not have caused the disruption before getting planning permission.