Agenda item

To provide Environment and Place Overview & Scrutiny Committee with a presentation on the progress to develop a BCP Greenspaces Play & Wheeled Play Strategy 

BCP Council does not currently have a strategy in place for play and as such does not have any tangible foundation from which to support the development and provision of play opportunities. The Council’s fixed play assets are ageing and in decline. Given the financial context the Council is facing it is vital that data and evidence captured as part of the strategy development is used to support future decisions in terms of play location, investment and maintenance.  

The Council is committed to the development of the strategy recognising the importance of play to the physical, social and psychological wellbeing of children and young people living and visiting the conurbation. The strategy will set out:  

·        A vision for play

·        A design standard

·        An evidence base of current provision

The Strategic Lead for Green Spaces and Conservation presented a report, a copy of which had been circulated to each Member and a copy of which appears as Appendix 'B' to these Minutes in the Minute Book. The Committee was advised that the presentation provided information on progress to develop a BCP Greenspaces Play & Wheeled Play Strategy.  It was noted that BCP Council does not currently have a strategy in place for play and as such does not have any tangible foundation from which to support the development and provision of play opportunities. The Council’s fixed play assets were ageing and in decline. Given the financial context the Council was facing it was vital that data and evidence captured as part of the strategy development is used to support future decisions in terms of play location, investment, and maintenance.  The Council remained committed to the development of the strategy, recognising the importance of play to the physical, social and psychological wellbeing of children and young people living and visiting the conurbation. It was explained that the strategy would set out:  

·       A vision for play

·       A design standard

·       An evidence base of current provision

In the following discussion a number of issues were raised by the Committee which included:

·     There were lots of play assets across the BCP area. These were subject to annual independent inspections for safety checks but funding for maintenance and repairs was limited. There had been no additional government funding since the Play Builder programme.

·     The paper was welcomed and there were concerns raised regarding the very limited budget available for maintenance and repair of a large number of sites. It was suggested that there could be some community involvement in trying to improve them. It was noted that the cost of play equipment was significant, and everything needed to meet specified standards and budgets for repair were not always sufficient which has meant equipment has needed to be approved.

·     Residents frequently raised concerns about the condition of play sites but without additional funding it difficult to do much beside paint, remove litter and clear shrubs. It was suggested that there should be a method by which residents could set up support groups for individual parks but Councillors advised that they had heard reports of residents being told they could not do certain things. 

·     Friends groups/support groups – There needed to be some sort of Council facilitation and limited by resources. Would need to get some sort of agreement in place to ensure that everyone is aware of roles and responsibilities.

·     Request for ward councillor involvement in the development of the play strategy. It was noted that it would need to be considered how

Ward Councillor involvement would be done as this would affect every ward across the borough in different ways.

·     Emphasising the ability of children to independently and safely access these areas. It was suggested that there needed to be a method within the documentation highlighting this and increasing accessibility. It was noted that everyone should have access to a play area within a 15 minute walk time and that spatial mapping would take into account areas which are effectively landlocked by different roads.

·     Play streets. The strategy was mostly looking at formal play areas, but it was noted that there were opportunities for other informal play areas.  If residents lived on a quiet road they can apply to close it for 2 hours on Sunday afternoon for play opportunities. It was noted that incidental play would also become part of the strategy. There was a need for further involvement from highways colleagues to support this.

·     It was noted that there were lots of opportunities for incidental play such as adapted bus shelters and community opportunities such as growing food alongside play spaces.

·     Importance of considering spaces for girls – Multi Use Games Areas (MUGAs), wheeled and traditional play spaces were used more by boys than girls. Different kinds of spaces to meet and maybe perform were needed.

·     Access to play spaces for people with mobility issues. Poole park currently provided a range of accessible equipment.

·     Concerns raised around street drinkers and anti-social behaviour making play spaces difficult for children to access. It was noted that the park team may be able to help but it was a difficult issue to resolve.

·     In some areas there was provision for small play areas within residential developments but also with access to a more substantial play space not far away. In these circumstances consolidation of facilities would be a factor. The strategy would include destination play areas to travel to, ensuring that these were sustainable. It needed to be considered whether current destination play parks were in the right locations and whether they were doing the right job. Councillors questioned how this tied in with the Local Plan. It was noted that the range of play was really important. Local community play was essential to “green heart parks”. Which would also bring in volunteering opportunities, café and toilet facilities.

·     Whether bigger areas were easier to maintain. Each different type of park had costs attached. Consideration would need to be given to developing new parks versus improving and expanding existing parks. Destination parks were easier to fund on an ongoing basis commercially.  Contactless donation units were being trialled by Bournemouth Parks foundation. There was some success with donation points in parks.

·     Communications with other play park operators. A number of areas were operated by other agencies. These were not included on the map but did need to be considered.

The Chair commented that the Environment and Place O&S Committee would be happy to feed into the strategy more and if any workshops were going ahead it would be good to have ward councillor involvement.

RESOLVED that Place Overview and Scrutiny committee support the development of a BCP Green Spaces Play and Wheeled Play Strategy.