Whilst Labour was the governing body over Barnsley Council (BMBC) the sports ground known to locals as the Rockingham Cricket Ground has been earmarked for further development, of more warehouses, around Junction 36 of the M1 in Birdwell.

The land we have come to know as the Rockingham Cricket Ground was gifted to the miners of the Rockingham Colliery by the Earl of Fitzwilliam in the 1800's for their recreational use as a thank you for their hard work they put into bringing coal to the surface.  The Earl even went on to covenant the land restricting its use for pleasure only.  The miners paid a weekly fee from their wages to have the ground maintained and the Rockingham Colliery Cricket Club was born.  

The miners and their families have used this land for decades upon decades and was set for life until Steve Houghton (Leader of the Local Labour Party) purchased the land on behalf of BMBC in the 1980's and has pursued the removal of the covenant to ensure the land is legal to develop.  I am not sure how far this has gone but I cannot see that the covenant has been removed to date.  (It is my belief that a covenant can only be removed by the person (or persons trust holders etc) who put the covenant in place).

BMBC has a new governing body under Reform UK, who have been reached out to, to investigate the Value for Money of this transactions, as it is not as straight forward as just moving the club and developing the land.  For me, it does not make sense and appears on the face of it as false economy.

Please add your signature to this petition to raise awareness to Reform UK that this is an historical monument to those miners who lost their lives making the Earl of Fitzwilliam prosperous.  It is a landmark to the families of those miners and to the future generations.  Once this has gone, the green space around our area will be no more.