A battle by residents to turn spare land into a village green has taken an unexpected turn - after Cheshire East confiscated its outdoor seating.
Residents fighting for council-owned land on Birtles Road in Whirley to be designated a village green are furious that two garden seats, a pub-style bench and table and a smaller seating table were this week seized by contractors working for the council.
They say the items were unearthed while sprucing up the site and that they do not belong to CEC, which is opposing the village green application.
"We found it while cleaning up the area a few weeks ago and it has been where kids and families have congregated. I am sure it isn't theirs – they have done this to damage our chances of becoming a village green," said Birtles Road resident Mary Grindy, a retired nursing sister.
A Cheshire East Council spokesman said: "We cannot be seen to encourage people to go on council land which is not judged appropriate for public use, so we have had to remove the benches.
"This land is not designated public open space and so is not maintained suitably for such use."
A public inquiry into the land's suitability as a village green takes place from October 12 to 14 in Macclesfield Town Football Club's McIlroy Suite.
