A CAMPAIGNER is hoping to raise £75,000 in less than two weeks to prevent a precious green space from being sold to developers at auction.

Hilary Carter, 64, of Newgate Street, Walton, has joined forces with other angry residents in a bid to save a small public garden in Church Road.

The quaint green space, near Walton train station and in a conservation area, measures 500 square metres.

An auction sign has now been put up in the garden by Strettons, which will be selling off the land on October 28 on behalf of JC Decaux.

Ms Carter said: “It was a huge shock when the sign went up because it is a much-loved piece of land and there has been a huge outcry from the community.

“Lots of people have many happy memories of playing in the garden as a child or even taking their own children there and it will be sad if this beautiful patch of green is lost.

“We are going to fight for this garden and protect this piece of land because it is so precious – we really don’t want to lose it.”

Ms Carter believes the garden, which is expected to sell for between £75,000 and 80,000, is likely to be snapped up by developers who will look to turn it into flats.

A group of activists, including Ms Carter, has now banded together in a valiant bid to either generate enough funds to purchase it or convince the buyers to donate it to the community.

In addition to not wanting the nostalgia attached to the garden to be taken away, the impact of building even more housing on the environment is a worry.

Ms Carter said: “This pretty little garden, which is very sweet and prettily-planted, will likely become flats, but this area is already filled with massive sheets of concrete.

“We are being proactive and trying to save this garden because Walton isn’t the greenest place anymore, so we can’t stand by and let this destruction happen.

“We want it to be donated to the community because we have already lost a lot of trees.

“I’m a grandmother and I don’t want my grandchildren to have no trees. We have to think about the future.”

To donate to the cause, go to justgiving.com/crowdfunding/saveourspacewalton.