By Anna Whittaker, Local Democracy Reporter
A council which clashed with environmental campaigners over plans to cut down four trees to extend a car park is running a review to examine ‘lessons learned’ from the saga.
The campaign by people in Newark opposed plans by Newark and Sherwood District Council to turn land on London Road in the town centre into a car park extension.
Newark and Sherwood District Council reversed the decision at the eleventh hour in November following negotiations with a developer.
Campaigners had camped beneath the trees which were due to be felled and refused to leave the site.
Some of the people involved in the protests are now working alongside the council to care for the green space which was saved.
Now, a review into the case, which the council said will assess “the decisions taken, and reasons for those decisions, in relation to the sale and lease of land and buildings”, is expected to complete within weeks.
Audit firm Assurance Lincolnshire is carrying out the review, which will also look at any “failures in practice and procedure” relating to decisions and negotiations relating to the land.
The final report will make recommendations on lessons to be learnt and improvements to be made on council practice, policies and procedures.
The review was discussed during the Audit and Accounts Committee on April 27.
In an update, a spokesperson for Assurance Lincolnshire said at the meeting: “As you are aware we were asked by the statutory officers to undertake a review of lessons learned around the sale of the municipal building and the extension of the London Road car park.
“We are drawing to the conclusion of our work and our draft report.
“The next steps in our process is to fact check the accuracy of our report, conclusions and findings, work with the leadership team to secure management actions and bring the report to a next committee.
“We had hoped to bring it to this committee but we didn’t quite meet the deadline.
“It is important that the committee has time to consider the findings.
“We are looking to have that report completed within the next four weeks.”
The original plan to fell the trees followed a legally binding agreement Newark and Sherwood District Council signed with developer Datch Properties Limited in 2019, which committed the council to building the car park.
The council said it reversed the decision after receiving a last minute offer from the developer in November.
