Playground getting a revamp

Date of Release: 18/10/06

STATE-of-the-art play equipment which has been chosen by the children who will use it is to be installed at six Charnwood Borough Council playgrounds.

The play areas at Loughborough’s Braddon Road, Garendon Green, Great Central Road, Holt Drive, Radmoor Road and Shortcliffe Park, off Old Ashby Road, are all undergoing a facelift – and should be ready to use by Christmas.

Youngsters and their parents met with Council staff in August to help select the types of swings, slides, roundabouts, climbing frames, multi units and some of the latest funky designs that will be installed at the popular playgrounds.

Contractors have prepared the sites for the delivery of the equipment, which complies with current European safety standards.

The revamped play areas will also have high-quality safety surfacing and paths for disabled access.

Cllr Sandie Gough, Charnwood Borough Council’s Cabinet member for Leisure, said: “It’s fantastic that the children who enjoy using these playgrounds have been given the chance to say what they want.

“Once all the work is completed, I’m sure they will be well used and I hope that with some of the wonderful new designs it will encourage more and more children to play creatively.

Further upgrades are planned for play areas across the Borough in the next 12 months, which is the last year of the Council’s three-year, £900,000 improvement programme to play facilities.

Meanwhile, Charnwood’s Leisure Services Team is working in partnership with Parish and Town Councils to develop a five-year play strategy for the Borough.

The object is to put together a portfolio of projects before submitting a bid to the Big Lottery Fund’s Children’s Play Initiative for funding.

It will look at areas such as activities offered by religious organisations, adventure playgrounds, skate parks, ball courts, a roving play bus, a play ranger scheme as well as improving natural play spaces.

Cllr Gough added: “It’s important that the strategy considers the needs of all children and aims to improve children’s play opportunities across the Borough.”