* £50,000 Playbuilder funding for 8-13 yrs at Lewesdon Drive play area is augmented by £20,000 Planning Obligations (Broadstone ward) funding for under 8's children's play.

Project latest:

• Play area closed; work started on site 12th February.

• 25th Feb - the installation team have had to withdraw from the site owing to the very wet ground conditions at this site; they will be back as soon as things improve

• OFFICIAL OPENING arranged for Friday, 16th April - all welcome!

• Pictures of some of the new equipment

We have repainted the existing play equipment that is due to remain.  Banyards will now be on site for about 3 weeks (weather permitting) to install new play equipment and carry out landscaping improvements.

Progress in pictures (click on any image to enlarge it):

25th Feb, site abandoned due to wet ground conditions
17th Feb, the existing climbing unit & swing frames have been repainted	25th Feb, a Moonwalker will now replace the roundabout [more]
17th Feb, a small graveyard of old and unwanted items, including the five seats removed from the top of the site	17th Feb, after a night of rain the area for the new roundabout looks more like a paddling pool
25th Feb, we have had to replace the roundabout due to the problems of standing water at the location excavated for it, despite it being one of the highest points in the site.  The roundabout's workings (bearings, etc) are all below-ground; its performance would be hampered by water and there are maintenance issues to consider.  The platform would sit at ground level to allow access to pushchairs and wheelchairs - which makes it 'inclusive' in terms of the physical abilities of users.  It's replacement, the Moonwalker (pictured above), is a similar size, and is also 'inclusive' but its workings are above-ground. The Moonwalker revolves at a fixed angle.  Users can lie on it and spin or be spun around, or they can walk or run on the soft surface, spinning the dish as they go.

Other new play equipment will include:

Climbing challenge - a 4m high net tower, but ours includes a rope bridge and slide!	A spiral spinning top
A springy 'raft' see-saw for 4 or more users	Balance challenge - bouncy jumping disks

This play area is often visited by children from Julia's House Hospice; to provide them with the sort of play experiences that able bodied children take for granted we have included equipment that is suitable for enjoyment by those with a range of physical restrictions, but which do not preclude others. 

One of those pieces is a special 'wheelchair seesaw' (left) which is made in Germany.

Others include a buddy swing and a roundabout that is fitted flush with the ground.

Click image above to download the plan for play improvements

January 2010 (PDF, 1MB)

• Read what young people & neighbours had to say about their play area

Click on images to enlarge them

Funding for a new footpath

In August 2009 Leisure Services was awarded a match funding grant from Sustrans, the sustainable transport charity, to make access improvements to Springdale Recreation Ground.

The £13,500 'Cycling England Links to Schools Project' grant will allow the Greenspace Maintenance Team to replace a dangerous access ramp at Lewesdon Drive with a DDA-compliant shared-use ramp.  The funds will also allow the improvement and widening of the existing path across the open space linking Silverdale Close to Lewesdon Drive.

Not only will these works benefit the open space with improved, safer, shared-use access, they will also improve links to the play area and to Springdale First School from local residential areas, and help promote use of sustainable transport options.

Works were carried out in September 2009.