A BID to secure village green status for lodge land is in trouble after an inspector ruled that Lowercroft was not a neighbourhood.

Following a public inquiry last November, Mr Alan Evans decided the plot overlooking the lower Whiteheads lodge did not qualify as a green.

His reasons included the view that Lowercroft could not be described as a discernible neighbourhood. He added that there was insufficient proof of its use for leisure pursuits over the past 20 years.

However, campaigners say the report is inadequate and want Bury Council to take a second opinion before members decide upon the issue.

The Open Spaces Society, which is now backing the efforts of campaigners, has now written to Bury Council stating that a decision against the green could be challenged by judicial review.

The application was made last spring by the Friends Of Cockey Moor, Whiteheads and Parkers Lodges to Bury Council.

The group want to safeguard the land around the reservoirs against any future development.

An independent inspector was appointed, with a final decision to be made by members of the planning control committee.

The 15-hectare sight is owned by Bury-based property firm Walshaw Estates, and is currently subject to a car park planning application.

Details of the inspector's decision were given at Wednesday's meeting of Bury West Area Board, which voted to continue its support for the green campaign.

Board member Roy Walker said: "To say that Lowercroft is not a neighbourhood is ridiculous. If you ask people who live around the lodges where they live, then they will say Lowercroft."

Coun Yvonne Creswell, who acted as chairman, said: "In my opinion the inspector's report is pretty weak. The Friends group have done a fantastic job and this land is certainly used by the community for leisure purposes."

Lodges owner Keith Talbot, who plans to build a car park for anglers on part of the proposed green, said the report had resolved the issue. He now hopes to see his plans passed at a future planning meeting, although no date for that decision has yet been scheduled.