Petition Launched to Solve Laurel Park Parking Woes

A petition has been launched to find a better matchday parking solution at Laurel Park in Lower Earley.

Laurel Park is a 14-acre community park next to Maiden Erlegh Nature Reserve, with football pitches, a pavilion and a car park.

It's home to Laurel Park FC, which runs 33 teams for boys and girls from under-7s to under-18s - 19 boys' teams and 14 girls' teams.

The current car park has roughly 50 spaces and often fills up, which residents say leads to inconsiderate parking on Marefield, the road linking Rushey Way to the pavilion.

Conservative councillor Pauline Jorgensen (Hillside) has launched the petition asking Wokingham Borough Council to fund a scheme to divert matchday traffic to Rushey Way.

She said: "I’d really appreciate it if you could sign up and try and help both the footballers and the residents of Marefield."

The petition calls on the council to develop a plan for matchday parking at Laurel Park, accessible from Rushey Way, and to allocate capital funding in the 2027/8 budget.

See the petition at www.paulinejorgensen.uk/Laurel_Park_Parking.

Cllr Jorgensen is leader of the opposition on the council. Laurel Park was once proposed for a 3G pitch, but neighbours opposed the plan and it was rejected in 2022. The council's Playing Pitch Strategy says alternative sites in Earley are Chalfont Park and Maiden Erlegh School.

James Aldridge, Local Democracy Reporter