Accessible play equipment for Thatcham parks to begin early next year
Work on accessible play equipment installations in Thatcham parks is hoped to begin early next year.
Thatcham Town Council’s accessible play equipment working group has finalised plans and costs for six new play facilities at five parks in the town.
The sites that will receive the new facilities are Kennet Heath, Turnfields, Dunstan Green, Moorside and Lamb Close.
The news was welcomed at a recent town council recreation and amenities meeting.
Quotes have come in with the entire project costing £41,577.59.
The funds come from both Thatcham Town Council and West Berkshire Council (WBC).
The town council was awarded £19,950 of Members’ Bid funding from WBC and allocated £20,000 from its own annual budget for the project.
By around February next year, Kennet Heath will get an accessible roundabout, at a cost of around £12,000, and the Turnfields play park will get an accessible Jeep, coming in at just over £17,000.
Other installations include a cognitive play panel and rain wheel at Dunstan Green, an accessible playhouse at Moorside and another cognitive play panel at Lamb Close coming in at a total of £11,000 combined.
A cognitive play panel is a play park structure that features activities and puzzles that children can physically interact with from mazes to colour matching games.
New £11k multi-play unit for Thatcham park
Councillor Mike Cole (Lib Dem, Thatcham North East) said that the project meets both of the council’s two briefs – the equipment is accessible for all children to use and will be scattered throughout the town.
While fellow councillor Jeremy Cottam (Lib Dem, Thatcham North East) told the committee: “I am feeling really happy that we are going ahead with this.
“All of us around this table wanted to get this up and going, now that is coming to reality."
Chairman and councillor Mark Lillycrop (Lib Dem, Thatcham West) added: “It’s nice to go from the inspection of playgrounds where we identified things that needed changing."
Dunstan Green also received a new toddler multi-play facility in late March, which cost £11,650.
The council has thanked WBC for its contribution and getting the project “through the system so quickly”.
