Campaigners fighting to protect a playing field in Totnes are calling on its owner to work with them on a community purchase ahead of a planned sale.

Friends of Lower Field wants to bring Lower Field and the adjoining Elmhirst Building, the former Girls School, into community ownership while generating investment for King Edward VI Community College (KEVICC).

The land is owned by academy trust Education South West (ESW), which has permission from the Secretary of State for Education to sell it at an independently verified land value.

The trust has said all proceeds from the sale will be reinvested in KEVICC.

Campaigners are now asking ESW to provide clear sale terms, an updated valuation and a timeline for a potential community bid.

They are also seeking a protected period in which to develop a proposal and raise funds without competing against other buyers.

A public meeting has been called by the school for November 10 at 5.30pm in the Ariel Centre at KEVICC, where the community is being encouraged to ask the trust about its intentions.

Sienna Somers, of Friends of Lower Field, said a community bid could be achievable given the support the campaign had received.

“We believe that a community bid for the field and the Elmhirst Building would be absolutely within our reach given the overwhelming support this campaign has received in recent weeks,” she said.

She said ESW had a choice between working with campaigners to create investment for the school while keeping community needs at the centre of the process, or putting the land on the open market.

“The meeting on the 10th of November is an opportunity for them to share their intentions with the community.”

Friends of Lower Field is urging people who want to secure the green space while supporting investment in KEVICC to attend the meeting.

The campaign was formed in September after signs and barriers appeared in July, withdrawing permissive public access to the field.

It subsequently organised Saturday gatherings to demonstrate the importance of the space to local people, attracting significant interest and national press attention.

The field has a long history of shared use, with archival correspondence reviewed by campaigners recording community sports use alongside school activities in the late 1930s.

More recently, it has been used for informal recreation and access to the River Dart, and has become particularly important for girls’ and women’s sports since 2020.

A campaign survey, which received more than 165 responses from local people, found 90 per cent said the field mattered to their physical or mental wellbeing.

Some 70 per cent said they had no alternative space to use, while respondents reported memories of using the field dating back to 1966.

The proposed community purchase remains at an early stage, with its scope and terms yet to be established. Any bid would depend on cooperation from ESW, alongside further valuation, consultation and fundraising.

Local people who want to help shape or support a community purchase can contact Friends of Lower Field at [email protected].