A CAMPAIGN has been launched in a bid to find the “lost” playing fields of the Tendring district.

More than 900 playing fields across the UK were set up by the Carnegie Trust between 1927 and 1935.

It pumped £200,000 into the project – worth about £10million today.

Part of the deal was the playing fields should be kept for the benefit of the community forever.

No records were kept about the location of the playing fields, and now a Field Finders campaign has been launched to find the sites and protect them from developers.

The Carnegie Trust’s Douglas White said: “When these grants were made, it was a significant sum of money for outdoor recreational spaces across the UK.

“We want to find as many of these fields as possible and ensure that they remain legally protected for the local community.”

People who knowwhere Carnegie playing fields are can go to fieldsintrust.org to report their location by the end of August.

There are believed to be sites in Clacton, Frinton and Walton, Kirby le Soken and Thorrington.

Confirmed locations that can be legally protected also have the chance to win £5,000 to improve facilities such as children’s play areas.