By Robert Van de Noort
I was pleased to meet so many people in Shinfield last week, at the community consultation event held jointly by the University and Shinfield Parish Council. We were talking about plans for new facilities for sport and outdoor recreation.
As my University colleagues undertaking research in psychology and education have shown, getting outside for even mild activity can bring a huge boost to mental health and wellbeing, and can even help children get higher grades at school.
While Reading and Wokingham are blessed with great natural resources, geography alone doesn’t teach children learn to play sport or manage habitats for wildlife. We need dedicated people and space, and careful planning to do that.
After a decade of house building in Shinfield, largely on land formerly owned by the University, a conversation on the facilities that are needed to enjoy the outdoors was long overdue.
For the University and the parish council, this was a listening exercise – and from the many conversations many points of view came across.
A large number of people I spoke to, many with school-age children, conveyed their passion for sport. They were excited by the prospect of creating new football and rugby pitches and other sports facilities. The idea for a 3G pitch was met with a lot of enthusiasm.
Some wanted to know more about green spaces, such as the Ridge and Langley Mead SANGs (Suitable Alternative Natural Green Space). After the heavy rain, there is a lot of water covering the Langley Mead SANG, which is exactly what it is meant to do, reducing flood risk elsewhere in Shinfield and increasing their biodiversity.
Others were looking more for a destination in Shinfield, a place where residents can come together for a picnic or just meeting up with friends.
Our proposal for a community garden, including an orchard populated by Berkshire fruit trees from the University’s National Fruit Collection, received a lot of positive feedback.
A number of residents commented on the University selling farmland for housing, and with that the loss of farmed open space. This is a fair question.
As a University, we have our roots in agriculture, and are committed to it for the long term. More broadly, we exist to enable learning and discovery. Selling land allows us to reinvest in education and research, while also providing the opportunity for new homes for members of our community.
As a University we have committed to be more open in what we are doing and why, including in the sale of land, and in our plans for development.
The recent community engagement event in Shinfield was a great help for the University, and I hope demonstrates a transparent and open relationship with our local communities.
My impressions on the day of the consultation are just that.
We will analyse all the written responses in the coming days and weeks, and continue to work with Shinfield Parish Council and others on finding the best solutions for new sport and outdoor recreation facilities.
Professor Robert Van de Noort is the vice-chancellor of the University of Reading
