The Wedding Cake Tree in Grove Park, Weston-super-Mare, is far more than just a tree in a park. It’s the park’s living centerpiece—offering shade for children, a natural playground, and an established habitat for pollinators. 

North Somerset Council has approved the demolition of fully functional public toilets—closed only after the attendant was withdrawn amid claims of “vandalism”—to build a new block elsewhere in the park. Although officials assert they considered alternatives, they have offered no evidence for rejecting simple, low-cost measures such as reinstating staff or installing CCTV at the existing site.  

The original location is as safe and user-friendly year-round, whereas the new site lies in a more secluded part of the park, offering neither improved accessibility nor enhanced security against vandalism. Furthermore, the council claims to have consulted with disability groups and community police, but no clear records of those discussions or of any feedback from regular park users have been published. There is no clear reasoning for this hugely expensive redesigning and destruction of this used area of the park other then aesthetics, which aren't needed.  
 

The project is partly funded by a £20 million “levelling-up” grant, yet the contract has been awarded to a London firm, yielding no clear benefit to the North Somerset economy. The council has offered no convincing explanation of how this spending supports our local area, or how killing this area of the park will improve it. 

Meanwhile, Grove Park itself is falling into decay: shrub borders and flowerbeds have vanished, the pond and fish have been removed, and lawns are, in bad shape and threadbare. Those same funds could restore these features or create new community attractions that discourage vandalism, support local businesses and draw families and visitors. 

They propose removing the well-established Wedding Cake Tree and replacing it with saplings and shrubs—despite previous planting schemes collapsing from inadequate maintenance. It will take decades for those young trees to equal the current specimen’s size, biodiversity value and historic character. 

Key decision-makers—Councillor Mark Canniford, Council Leader Mike Bell, Julie Stuckley (head of the Placemaking team) and a CIC involved with Grove Park—have either remained silent or declined to support efforts to preserve this area. Some have even dismissed the tree as “low grade” or useful only to “some children.” Which is false, and ignoring that, for many families local to this park without private gardens, will lose the simple joy of climbing a mature tree delivers free exercise, social connection and lifelong memories—benefits no row of saplings around a toilet block can ever replace, if they survive at all. 
 

We urge North Somerset Council to pause this proposal and launch a genuinely transparent, inclusive consultation.  
We ask them to reconsider upgrading the original site—an option that would create jobs, improve accessibility and allow us to preserve our public conveniences and the beloved Wedding Cake Tree. By redirecting these funds toward thoughtful park enhancements, we can boost the park’s appearance and deliver far greater benefits for residents, visitors and the local economy. Please support our petition to make this vision a reality.