VILLAGE green campaigners could set a legal precedent if their House of Lords appeal is successful.

For the past five years, the Washington First Forum has been fighting to block plans for a new sixth form college on the site of the sports arena at Princess Anne Park, Washington, Tyne and Wear.

An application to have the area registered as a town or village green was rejected by Sunderland City Council, and its decision was upheld in a judicial review in the High Court.

When the forum took its case to the Court of Appeal, it was defeated again, but the court said it was free to petition the House of Lords.

Lord Justice Dyson said the case had raised an "issue of considerable general importance" on the status of village greens, never before directly considered by the courts.

Now, after examining the case, the Legal Services Commission has agreed to fund proceedings in the House of Lords, and a document is being prepared for the law lords' consideration.

Robert Duggan, acting chairman of the Washington First Forum, said if the case was successful, it would close a legal loophole and strengthen the law on protecting village greens.

"The legal argument revolves around implied permission, and whether or not it is sufficient to defeat an application to have open space registered as common land," he said.

"Our application is based on the fact that the sports arena has been used for over 20 years for lawful sports and pastimes.

"The future of other playing fields will depend on the outcome of the action in the House of Lords.

"A positive outcome will mean fresh hope that these playing fields will be saved."

Although the Commons Registration Act exists to protect open spaces, the National Playing Fields Association's statistics show that the number of developments on them increased by 40 per cent in the financial year from 1999/2000 to 2000/2001.

Recently, an application to build 148 houses on a recreation area in Ushaw Moor, County Durham, was approved by Durham City Council.