Play park honouring late Queen opens in Thatcham

Work has been completed on a new accessible play park in Thatcham.

The facility, on the Thatcham Memorial playing fields, was officially opened on Friday, May 19.

The park was named the Platinum Jubilee Play Area in memory of the late Queen Elizabeth II.

The park is part of a two phase project by the Thatcham Memorial Foundation, who set out to create an enclosed play space for primary school children and a second later phase aimed at teenagers.

The latter phase will take place across the wider playing fields.

The play equipment in the park is accessible for children with special needs or disabilities.

It features an accessible see saw, accessible slide, swings, monkey bars and roundabout.

The park has been delivered at a cost of £101,546, which came from the West Berkshire Council Community Infrastucture Levy and other grant making bodies, companies and fundraising events.

The additional funds came from Syder Foundation, Miss E Lawrence Trust, Englefield Charitable Trust, Thatcham Town Council, Thatcham Parochial Charities, Moto Foundation and companies Little Kickers, MyCarBoots and Smart Parking UK.

Year 3 pupils from Whitelands Park Primary School were invited to the ribbon cutting and did the all-important job of being first to test the play equipment.

The Lord Lieutenant of Berkshire James Puxley cut the ribbon on the new facility and said it was an honour to be present.

He said: “It is so lovely to see the children so happy and enjoying themselves. It is a lovely occasion and I am very happy to be here.

“It is very important that it is in her [Queen] memory. Unless we tell the children about it, they won’t know anything about it.”

The location had already been identified by West Berkshire Council as a potential site for a play area.

Thatcham Memorial Foundation finance and development manager, Nathan Gregory, said: “It was a case of how do we mark the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee in a way that will benefit as many people as possible.

“We thought this time we would aim for a younger market.”

The park also features a panel of local history detailing important historical moments from the town.

Year 3 teacher at Whitelands Park Amy Smith said the park has brought learning to life for her pupils who have been learning about the royal family recently.

She said: “We are also doing a lot of work getting them excited about the local community so it is really interesting for them to be able to have a little read of that [history panel].”

The Thatcham mayor, Mark Lillycrop, was also present.

He said: “Every detail has been thought out extremely well.

“Even down to the colour scheme, everything has been carefully planned out.

“I think it is really important we have got these [history] boards around the town in key locations.

“We have got a very active heritage group and historical society who are making sure we maintain these boards and keep the children informed.

“We have got a rich tradition in Thatcham and I think it is important that young people know about it.”