The council looks set to improve the play equipment in Sweyne Park – there’s a report recommending this that will go to the council cabinet next week.
You can download the report here . (68kb) But here’s the text:
1 DECISION BEING RECOMMENDED
1.1 That this year?s budget allocation is used to improve the facilities at Sweyne Park, Rayleigh, to ensure that the play equipment meets the current health and safety standards.
2 REASON/S FOR RECOMMENDATION
2.1
Each year the Capital budget provides ?50,000 for the ongoing improvements of the playspaces to ensure that they meet health and safety requirements and the needs of the residents.
2.2
Following an assessment of all sites by officers, it is proposed that the programme for 2011/12 should include:-
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The provision of a multi-play unit at Sweyne Park. To the north eastern corner of the park, there is a children?s enclosed ?cloverleaf? play space, which has sections for infant, primary and junior school age children. The existing equipment was installed about 14 years ago and is now past its effective service life. The last inspection by an independent safety consultant stated that renovation or renewal is required. It is considered that the best option is renewal with a new multi-play unit. The estimated replacement cost is ?35,000.
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The renewal of the safety surface at the playspace at Sweyne Park. The existing safety surface is old and requires replacing. The estimated cost is ?7,000.
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The replacement of the swing at Sweyne Park which is at the end of its effective service life. The last safety report indicated issues with the main bar, the head casing and chains. The estimated replacement cost is ?8,000.
3 ALTERNATIVE OPTIONS CONSIDERED
3.1 The works referred to in this report have been developed in consultation with our Legal, Estates & Member Services Division following a report from the independent Playground Safety Consultant.
4 RISK IMPLICATIONS
4.1 If the work is not completed then the equipment will require expensive maintenance to ensure that it does not present a health and safety hazard.
That park is considered a health and safety hazard? What about Cherryhenge (the new play area at Cherry Orchard Country Park)?
£8000? For a swing?
Does it come with a member of royalty to push you?
What is a multi-play unit ?
Would recommmend the play area tucked away at Belfairs park. A replica of this play equipment would be excellent. The one i mean is not the one you can see from the road at the end of the park.
What about the cost of keeping the play equipment free of graffitti – or will it be redesignated as an “Art Playground” like the kick wall was as an “Art Wall” so that out local feckless yoofs could turn it into a complete eyesore.
There are some very good childrens play areas around, so hopefully the council will get inspiration from these. The one at Chalkwell park is very good, as are the ones at Great Notley Country park and Hylands Park in Chelmsford. The kids also like the one at Hockley woods.
My vote goes to one like that at Belfairs, which is a smaller scale of the one at Highlands, great fun and big thumbs up from all the children
DHPW, I cannot place Highlands, do you mean Hylands at Chelmsford?. May wish to take grandaughter there.
Chris / team.
Will you please formally raise the issue of keeping the area free from graffitti, this was raised as an objection to the kick wall before it was built ( now conveniently ignored ). I am sure it’s all jolly good fun for the kids but it will be written on and needs to be kept clean. It’s no good saying that the budget has gone once it’s built.
Rayleigh Resident – I have checked and can advise that a Multi play unit is normally a single item of equipment comprising an amalgam of a climbing frame, high level platform, slide and vertical pole etc. #
Will get back to you about the grafitti issue.
I noticed on Sunday that everything in the playground had been painted, except the current “Multi-play” unit, which looks pretty shabby with the graffiti all over it.
Greenbelt, the Hylands park play area that I referred to is the one in Chelmsford. If you use the carpark entrance accessed from the A414 Greenbury Way, the new play area is adjacent the carpark. There’s also a cafe and shop in the old stable yard if you want to walk over to the area where the house is.
I definitely recommend Great Notley Country Park. It is not very scenic, but they have several play areas and pieces of play equipment dotted around, and they’re actually very interesting for the kids to use. Some of the climbing equipment is very high, which suprised me in this era of health and safety – great stuff. It also has links to the Flitch Way cycle path that has been built on an old railway line, I hope to give this a try some time soon.
Chris – so all the existing equipment is going to be replaced with one fancy climbing frame?
Sorry Greenbelt, yes that should have been Hylands, not Highlands, great place to take the Children lots of open space, great play area and good cafe in the court yard as well as local produce sold on a Sunday
Sean, I’ll get back to you one this…
Sean – I wanted to be 100 percent sure before replying . The situation is that a new four-part swing will replace the existing swing, there will be a new multiplay unit, and there will be a new safety surface. The existing equipment that is still in working order will stay.
Not as bad as I first though then. Thanks Chris.
Thank you to everyone who has made suggestions about good play equipment they’ve seen in different locations. Your comments have been read by council officers and have definitely been useful….
Rayleigh Resident – we have discussed the issue of grafitti with officers. The response was that the council currently tries to inspect play equipment twice per week and will try to clean any grafitti off. Sometimes this is difficult to do, and the council will be thinking about what kind of surfaces each bit of equipment has when they are choosing the new stuff….
Chris – thanks
Hello my names Charles King, I’m only 13 but I would appreciate the opportunity to speak not only on behalf of myself but on the behalf of many others to. I understand that the concerns of many adults are of the graffiti within the park and also the vandalism that has occured in the park over time, and I have to say I am along with others my age disgusted by this.
I have grown up in a house not even 5 minutes from the park I would travel to it everyday with my family and play there until my feet hurt, as I have grown older I head of to the park for longer hours with friends (rather big groups sometimes) but as we have all practically grown up in this park we all feel that we have had our time and we are all beginning to endure the fact that we are growing up and we should perhaps slow down more for the sake of other, much younger children.
Now we have all realised over the years that lots of other people our age have not been as respectful to this park as we would like, here are some of the things they have done:
breaking a locking device on the new disabled swing making it unusable to younger children.
Breaking a ladder that leads to the top of the smaller climbing frame, making the 2nd level of the frame impossible to reach for much younger people.
Graffiti under the bigger climbing frame and on the see-saw, roundabout and over other various parts of the park.
We have seen very innapropriate graffiti over the new tables just outside of the park which is not suitable for many people to witness.
And as for the kickwall I am thouroughly annoyed at due to the fact that it is practically unusable, there is glass everywhere, there are thick slices of paint on the floor, there is a lot of the time innapropriate graffiti all over it and graffiti that isn’t very attractive within our community anyway.
I hope these things can be resolved. But I understand that you are doing all you can aat the moment. and me and my friends really appreciate that so thankyou so much.
James, welcome to onlineFOCUS !
And thank you for your very thoughtful comments.
Charles – your contribution has been very well written – well done.
Re the Kick Wall, you may not know but this was opposed by many residents when it was first mooted. One of the objections was around the issue of graffiti and who would be responsible for keeping it clean. These objections were ignored and the wall went ahead ( very keenly supported by the Lib Dems if I remember correctly ). Now some unelected person/s in RDC have redesignated it as an “art wall” – and hey – no need to clean it. The thing is a utter eyesore and if I had my way I would pull it down. If kids can’t respect it then they should lose it – end of.
Rayleigh Resident- Thankyou very much for reading my comments, it is much appreciated. I find the controversy over the wall very interesting and to be fair no surprise at all. And yes I totally agree, if us kids can’t respect what we are given then we shouldn’t be given it.