Park's peaceful haven could be under concrete in the future

These are from the point of view of a member of the public who both supports the hospice and all the dedicated work for the terminally ill, but is also a lover of the wonderful green spaces which belong to our city. Amongst all the arguments which have been, and still are, being bandied about, as far as I see it the whole issue is down to the fact that Sheffield Council are trying to give away something that does not belong to them. In my book that is theft!

As a baby in 1935, when JG Graves gave the park to the people of Sheffield, I was taken by my family to this wonderful place (pushed in a pram up all the hills from Heeley) every Saturday, along with other members of the family. We had picnics, I learned to walk on the soft green grass, my cousins played at cricket, the older members sat around and chatted; it was a day out in the fresh air for everyone, away from the soot and grime of normal everyday life.

If you lived near the park, as I do, you would see that today, over 70 years later, the same thing is still happening. Mums pushing babies in prams, dads playing at football with older children, feeding the ducks, visiting the animals, having an ice cream, or just walking the dogs.

When this situation arose, I went out and chatted to members of the public on various occasions and found that there are visitors from as far away as Rotherham, Chesterfield and even Worksop. Their comments being that it is such a safe place for children, away from the dangers of traffic, with peace and tranquility for them. One family told me that it takes two hours of gentle strolling to cover all the paths. Obviously, building the hospice is not going to take away all these things immediately but, once the covenant is broken, it could be broken again and again.

In another 70 years, there could be a multi-million pound luxury housing complex overlooking the lakes, roads criss-crossing the open green spaces with more and more housing or, dare I say it, blocks of flats.

Who knows?

Margaret Bell, Charles Ashmore Road, Sheffield S8.