Shropshire Council should sell land near Oswestry's leisure centre to the town council to allow a new skatepark to be built, a councillor has said. 

Councillor Duncan Kerr, who sits on both Oswestry Town Council and Shropshire Council, has put forward a motion calling for assurances from the unitary authority over any losses from the budget passed last week.

And in it he calls on the council to negotiate with the town council on both The Centre, which the council is looking at acquiring, and land beside the leisure centre to allow a skatepark to be created.

Shropshire Council has agreed to slash £62 million from its budget for the forthcoming year to balance the books, which has led to Cllr Kerr to call for swift action over outstanding issues.

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And the former mayor also wants to ensure that if services are cut, communication with the council and residents is upheld.

His motion states: “Shropshire Council (SC) has announced it needs to make a further £62m in savings if it is to restore the balances which it has allowed to become perilously low.

“(Lezley Picton) has stated that the cuts will be very serious and noticed by residents, they will affect all services but non-statutory services including libraries and leisure centres are likely to bear the brunt.

“I don’t think anyone doubts that these are the most draconian cuts imposed by a council in Shropshire during peacetime.

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“It is being said that 300 jobs could be lost, some of these are likely to be in Oswestry.

“Although Oswestry Town Council (OTC) is not responsible for these cuts it has a duty to protect residents from them and minimise their impact where possible.

“It is proposed that SC is urged to conclude negotiations to allow OTC to acquire both the Centre and land beside Oswestry Leisure Centre for a skateboard park as soon as possible.

“This will assist SC in reducing its revenue expenditure.

“That this council demands that SC consult both it, and the people of Oswestry, before reducing any services offered in Oswestry."

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The motion also speaks out against the possible closure of the town's recycling centre, with two of the five in Shropshire set to be lost under council budget plans.

“That this council affirms it is resolutely and completely opposed to the reported closure of the recycling centre in Oswestry," it says.

“Such an action would increase fly tipping vehicle emissions from cars driving to Shrewsbury and reduce recycling rates by removing facilities for recycling items such as tetra packs.”

The motion will be discussed by councillors and is part of Oswestry Town Council’s March full meeting at the Guildhall, starting at 7pm, which is also available through Microsoft Teams.