A £250k revamp of a Calverton park repeatedly targeted by vandals has now been completed – and it will officially reopen this week.
Work to improve pathways and install new play equipment at James Seely Park on Main Street began in October and has now been completed.
The cash to make the improvements was found by Calverton Parish Council with the intention of making the play area ‘the best around’.
Last December the Parish Council was granted £100,000 from the FCC Community Action Fund to go towards the revamp.
They also were granted £20,000 from Nottinghamshire County Council, with the rest of the bill mostly being covered by various developer contributions called Section 106 contributions. These funds are provided by housing developers to local councils through the planning process to improve facilities and give back to a community’s infrastructure.
Children from St Wilfrid’s Primary School, Manor Park Infant and Nursery School and Sir John Sherbrooke Junior School in the village were asked to vote on the style of new play park equipment – and more than 600 took part.
A three-storey tower with slides, a multiplay unit, swings and other features have now been installed.
An accessible seesaw and swing for children in wheelchairs have also been included.
The revamped park will officially open at 3.30pm tomorrow (11)
Chairman of Calverton Parish Council, Councillor Andy Meads, has been part of a project to secure as much funding as possible to help renovate the park.
Back in September he told Gedling Eye that the park had felt “neglected” and was overdue regeneration.
He said: “Everybody loves the park, I think people in this village deserve something special – I used to use it when I was a kid and it is about time we had something decent there.”
Cllr Meads added: “I think it’s going to be as good as we could ever have a park, it’s definitely going to be the best park around here, plus we are catering for kids in wheelchairs now, which a lot of parks don’t.
