The Child Development Centre HR2 7RL - How was it acquired
Case reference EIR2026/00485
Received 25 February 2026
Published 23 March 2026
Request
Play Area next to The Child Development Centre, HR2 7RL (to the rear of Boycott Road, Hereford). The Play Area was previously owned ad managed as a Play Area by Herefordshire Council until 2002 when it was part of a Large Scale Voluntary Transfer (LSVT) to Herefordshire Housing (Housing Association).
1. At the time of the LSVT in November 2002, did Herefordshire Council advertise its intention to dispose of the public open space, allowing for public objections (Local Government Act 1972, section 123 ("A))? (Please provide evidence of the fact that this was advertised and any evidence of public comments) It is understood that Herefordshire Council (Then Hereford Corporation) acquired this land in around the 1940's.
2. Did the local authority acquire the land either, under the Public Health Act 1875, or the Open Spaces Act 1906? these were acts under which local authorities could acquire land for the provision of recreation land or public open spaces. If the local authority does not know the details of how the land was acquired (question
2) please could you let me know how/ where this information could be obtained from.
Response
Play Area next to The Child Development Centre, HR2 7RL (to the rear of Boycott Road, Hereford).
The Play Area was previously owned ad managed as a Play Area by Herefordshire Council until 2002 when it was part of a Large Scale Voluntary Transfer (LSVT) to Herefordshire Housing (Housing Association).
1. At the time of the LSVT in November 2002, did Herefordshire Council advertise its intention to dispose of the public open space, allowing for public objections (Local Government Act 1972, section 123 ("A))?
(Please provide evidence of the fact that this was advertised and any evidence of public comments)
It is understood that Herefordshire Council (Then Hereford Corporation) acquired this land in around the 1940's.
2. Did the local authority acquire the land either, under the Public Health Act 1875, or the Open Spaces Act 1906? these were acts under which local authorities could acquire land for the provision of recreation land or public open spaces.
If the local authority does not know the details of how the land was acquired (question 2) please could you let me know how/ where this information could be obtained from.
A: This information is not held, as the deed for this property is no longer held by Herefordshire Council. It is assumed that all individual deeds were transferred to Herefordshire Housing at the time of the stock transfer, and there would have been no operational reason for the Council to retain copies.
Only Housing Open Space was included within the transfer. Public Open Space was not transferred and is managed under separate arrangements. While the Council is required to advertise its intention to dispose of Public Open Space under section 123 of the Local Government Act 1972 to allow for public objections, this requirement does not apply to Housing Open Space.
We no longer have any members of staff who were involved in the original stock transfer, and the only documentation we hold relating to the transfer is the transfer deed.
In response to your query regarding how the acquisition details of the land might otherwise be obtained, I regret that we are unable to advise further. You may wish to contact the Herefordshire Archive and Records Centre (HARC) to arrange a visit and consult their holdings, although we cannot guarantee that any relevant records are held. Records relating to the former Hereford and Worcester County Council are held by Worcestershire Archives.
You can book a visit to the Herefordshire Archive and Records Centre (HARC) below:
https://www.herefordshire.gov.uk/herefordshire-archive-records-centre
Documents
This is Herefordshire Council's response to a freedom of information (FOI) or environmental information regulations (EIR) request.
You can browse our other responses or make a new FOI request.