A RESIDENTS' referendum has started in St Annes over the planned sale of part of the town's main park.

Campaign group Supporters of Ashton Gardens (SOAG) has delivered voting forms to 'every St Annes household' to find out if residents support council plans to sell 0.6 per cent of the gardens - something the group vehemently opposes.

Fylde Borough Council says the sale is necessary to raise £500,000 to attract a further £1.5 million from the Heritage Lottery Fund, enough to pay for a revamp of the gardens and its leisure facilities.

SOAG and the council had been jointly working on a funding bid and public referendum.

But the two parties split acrimoniously after SOAG produced its own referendum leaflets independent of the council.

SOAG chairman, Fred Moor, said: "The council will consider the matter again in late June, and this may be the last chance to have a say whether part of the gardens should be sold off.

"We are urging everyone to cast their vote."

Anyone who did not receive a voting form can obtain one by telephoning 728047 or 721608, SOAG said, and members will also be answering questions and collecting forms in St Annes Square this weekend (May 29 and 30).

But Cllr Susan Fazackerley, chairman of the council's group which had worked with SOAG, said leisure and recreation committee members had backed the task group's decision to discount the results.

"Because SOAG had gone ahead and issued their referendum without any consultation, and because it was very obviously biased and containing a lot of inaccuracies, I'm afraid we won't be taking a great deal of notice of the results," she said.

Cllr Fazackerley said she had not received a referendum form, despite being a St Annes resident, and that she had been told by one SOAG member that the group felt it 'wasn't in meaningful discussions' with the council, prompting the breakaway.

But Cllr Fazackerley said it would be 'a shame' if SOAG was replaced by a different community group to work with the council, as suggested by Cllr Colin Walton, a former SOAG member.

"SOAG have done a lot of splendid work and I am sure that these extreme views about the planned sale don't represent the majority of the grass-roots members," Cllr Fazackerley said.

A decision on the sale is expected at the June meeting of the council's leisure and recreation committee.