RESIDENTS have returned to Poole Park to protest against the trailed entrance closure. 

Following their first protest in January, hordes of people returned to the park's entrance and exit point on Whitecliff Road and Twemlow Avenue.

Protestors displayed handmade placards and flyers with the group chanting "leave our park alone" as it demanded BCP Council reconsider closing the entrance.

The group gathered at lunchtime on Saturday, February 3, to continue to rally against what they called a 'made-up problem.'

Protesters generally believed vehicle access had never posed issues at Poole Park, with no recorded incidents or problems related to vehicles in the park's history.

Sharon Hunt has lived in Poole all her life; she was involved in organising the protest.

Sharen said: "It is important that we keep making our voices heard.

"All we want is to keep the right to be able to drive through the park.

"The closure is unnecessary; there has never been an incident involving a vehicle here."

The local authority has blocked vehicle access to the entrance and exit points since Wednesday, January 17.

It has been running a public consultation alongside the 'trial closure'.

A number of residents have criticised BCP Council, saying the decision was made 'behind closed doors' and the closure is 'detrimental to the wider community.'

Poole resident Tim Thompson said: "It was an underhand decision made by the council, steered through private meetings.

"The decision has nothing to do with the local community, and we were given no opportunity to converse or debate."

Many believe that the decision made by the council will be counterproductive, preventing the elderly and people with disabilities from being able to access the Park. 

Bournemouth Echo: A protestor holding a placard for disabled residents A protestor holding a placard for disabled residents (Image: NQ)

One protestor said: "The one thing people with dementia can't actually enjoy is the experience of being driven through the park.

"They enjoy feeding the ducks and going to the café, closing the road will prevent this."

People also stressed closing the through road between Whitecliff Park and Poole would lead to a traffic build-up in the surrounding area, potentially causing pollution issues for residents in the area.

Speaking previously, Cllr Andy Hadley, BCP Council’s portfolio holder for climate response, environment and energy, said trialling the closure alongside an online public consultation would give residents the chance to comment by seeing how the proposed measure affects them and others.