THE father of a schoolboy who became stuck waist-deep in mud is furious the area had not been made safe prior to the incident.

Bentley Tonge and his friend Harvey, both 14, had been on their bikes in Philips Park and climbed the pile of soil to see if it was safe to cycle over. 

But the pair, who both attend Prestwich Arts College, began to sink into the mud and every time they moved they sank further. Their friend called the emergency services and they were rescued by firefighters. 

But Bentley’s dad, Tristan, said more should have been done to make the area safer for youngsters.

He said: “It should be fenced off. It’s dangerous. I rang the council but they aren’t interested, they just fob you off. 

“I know budgets are tight but even if it had the orange tape around it or some form of warning would be better.”

He added: “Bentley and his mate go out on their bikes on the weekend and are always looking for different tracks. I don’t mind, it keeps them out of mischief. They spotted a mound of mud but they couldn’t see the other side of it. So they got off their bikes and went walking up it to see if it was safe to go right over it, but as they’ve got up they have started to sink and each time they wriggled they sank further. 

“Their other friend, Jake, panicked and rang 999. They had the sense to look what was on the other side. If it’s a younger kid next time or someone on their own or there’s no one about it could be worse.”

Mr Tonge, a HGV driver, praised the emergency services who helped the boys. 

Crews from Whitefield and Broughton, along with the water incident unit from Heywood and the technical response unit and major rescue unit from Ashton-Under-Lyne, came to the boys’ rescue in the Whitefield park. 

Station manager Paul Fearnhead, said: “The boys had climbed on soil that had recently been moved and made unstable by a digger. We would advise people, especially in these wet conditions to avoid building and work sites or any areas that have recently had industrial work. There are lots of unforeseen dangers to consider.”

The crew rescued the boys using specialist personal protection equipment, trench boards and a mud lance. Paramedics checked the boys over at the scene.

A spokesman for Bury Council, said: “We believe the mound was there because of work the Forestry Commission are carrying out on their land. We will be making our own enquiries into the matter.”

A Forestry Commission spokesperson said: “We are very sorry to hear about the situation the boys found themselves in.

"The mud is there from the Kingfisher Pond reinstatement work that the Highways Agency are completing to repair the pond which was damaged as part of the work on the motorway.

"We agree with the advice from the emergency services that the area should be avoided because it is very clearly an extremely muddy worksite.”

Highways England is completing work on the pond in Philips Park to improve habitats for local wildlife. This is being done as part of environmental work taking place alongside the smart motorway scheme. 

A spokesperson for Highways England, said: "We were very concerned to learn of this incident, and have now installed a fence around the area to seal it off from the public.

“The mud is drying out after we removed it from a pond in Philips Park as part of environmental work we are doing to provide enhanced habitats for local wildlife during the Manchester smart motorway scheme nearby.”