Developers should go back to the drawing board to create more leisure facilities on a historic bowling club green, a residents’ group has urged.

Latest proposals for three tennis courts, a sports pavilion, community garden and housing on the 100-year-old Mansfield Bowling Club, Croftdown Road, Dartmouth Park, were on show at a public meeting on Wednesday (October 1) at Parliament Hill School, Highgate Road.

Mansfield Neighbours Group, which is fighting the plans, told developers Generator Group that they should reconsider making the scheme more open to the public.

The land was left to the public by philanthropist Angela Burdett-Coutts about 140 years ago.

Keith Northrop, chairman of Mansfield Neighbours’ Group, said: “We all feel very passionate about this being a good opportunity as it’s quite a large site in the middle of north London and has enormous potential to be used by the community.”

Among ideas suggested for the site by residents at the meeting were playgrounds for pupils at nearby Brookfield Primary School in Chester Road, Highgate.

A spokesman for Generator Group said: “Generator appreciated the chance to present once again it’s proposals for the Mansfield Bowling Club to local residents at the council-led DM Forum.

“These latest proposals take on board comments and suggestions from residents at our previous exhibitions.

“We found the comments at the DM Forum very useful and hope that we were able to answer the questions raised.

“Although some residents expressed concerns about some aspects of our proposals we were pleased by support expressed by other residents and look forward to further discussions with the community and the council as the new planning application for a mixed use leisure and residential planning application is finalised for submission.”