Food giant faces backlash in village footpath row
Food giant faces backlash in village footpath row
Sarah Sanderson - in Preston, near HullFri, August 7, 2026 at 5:04 AM UTC
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Pat Ferguson and Ian Ireland are objecting to plans to close a footpath
Villagers are fighting plans to close part of a public footpath at the request of one of the country's biggest food producers.
Cranswick has applied to the Department for Transport (DfT) to block a section of Nuns Walk, which runs alongside its food processing plant in Preston, near Hull.
The company said the changes would "reduce disruption" for residents and ensure "the safety of pedestrians".
Pat Ferguson, who has lived in the village for 44 years, described the move as "big business stealing our heritage", adding: "It's history and we don't have much – it keeps getting eroded."
Part of Nuns Walk runs over a private road belonging to Cranswick, which is used by HGVs going to and from the site.
The Hull-based company has applied for a stopping-up order – a legal process used to close a highway – to prevent the use of at least 180m (590ft) of the footpath, which would instead be diverted.
According to Ferguson, the partially cobbled route takes its name from nuns who are said to have walked from the village church to a hospital in what is now east Hull.
A section of the path that Cranswick wants to close
Under the plans, the closed section would be diverted via Staithes Road, a busy main road into Preston.
Ian Ireland, who chairs Preston Parish Council, said the changes raised safety concerns for pedestrians because of the "single-file" pavement alongside Staithes Road.
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"We don't always come down in ones and twos," he said. "Sometimes there's a walking group comes down and when you're walking alongside your colleague and you're having a chat, you can't do that with a car five yards away from you all the time.
"It breaks the whole ambience of coming out for a country stroll."
The footpath crosses a private road owned by Cranswick
Cranswick, a member of the FTSE 250 index, produces products including pork, chicken and prepared foods.
Graham Stuart, the Conservative MP for Beverley and Holderness, has asked the company to work with local people to protect the footpath while allowing the business to meet its operational needs.
He said Cranswick was "an important local employer", but "local people deserve to have their voices heard and their concerns properly considered".
A spokesperson for Cranswick said the company was in contact with Stuart and would "continue engaging with him and the wider community as the works progress".
The DfT said Cranswick was expected to contact each of the objectors to try to resolve their issues. If objections remained, a local public inquiry could be held to rule on the matter.
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Source: “AOL Money”
