Wigan resident demands right to see the light

But while Paul Fowler pities St Aidan’s School in Winstanley for not being able to afford the work itself, he says he has no funds of his own to tackle the nuisance.

His house in Edgeware Avenue backs onto St Aidan’s land and there have been issues about the shade its trees create for some time.

But Mr Fowler replied: “Due to my disability I’m unable to work, so this would be a very large expense to me and would mean I would have to go without food to pay this.”

A spokesperson for St Aidan’s said: “We have recently been contacted by a neighbouring resident who has raised concerns about a tree which sits within the school’s boundary.

“Being a part of the local community is important to us at St Aidans, and so while there is no legal obligation for us to cut back the tree and it does not pose any safety concerns, as a gesture of goodwill we have offered to share the cost of doing so with the resident in order to resolve this issue.”

Mr Fowler said: “I do think that raises a bigger concern, that our local schools are not being provided with the right amount of budget in order to properly be able to maintain school grounds. I think that local residents would be outraged to know that our schools aren’t receiving the right amount of funding.

“But there is a Right to Light Act and I may need to enforce it if nothing changes.”

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