Bid to revitalise south Warwickshire playground which only has a bench... with three legs
A PLAY area in Wellesbourne – dubbed the ‘world’s most uninviting playground’ – could be revitalised as a community garden.
Residents living close to the play area in Frost Road want the space, which was left empty after being vandalised about 13 years ago, turned into a place where people can meet and children can play safely.
While they don’t want to see the return of the type of playground that attracted late-night issues, vandalism and the removal of the swings and other equipment, some want the village to take control of the site from a management company based in Scotland.
Ironically, many of the children who last enjoyed the play area are now in their early 20s – all that’s left is a bench which is missing two front legs, rubber playground mats and patches of grass.
During Covid the space became a place to safely meet with neighbours and residents have taken it upon themselves to mow the grass.
The land is owned by GEL – a UK-wide company based in Glasgow – having been transferred to them from a housing developer 17 years ago.
While GEL has carried out maintenance of the area, such as grass cutting, residents want to secure the land’s future for the community and would like Wellesbourne Parish Council to adopt it.
Sandra Smith, who has lived in Frost Road for 20 years, saw her 28-year-old daughter play on the site, but her other daughter, who is in her 20s, never got the chance.
“When we moved here it was lovely, but the teenagers vandalised the area,” she said. “What the residents want is a nice, peaceful place for children and parents with wildflowers and benches. It could be a community garden or sensory garden.”
Wellesbourne resident Simon Howes told the Herald he was shocked when he saw the play area a couple of weeks ago.
He lives nearby and has described the site as “the world’s worst playground” or the “world’s most uninviting playground”. He’s issued a rallying call on social media to “make a difference” and said he intended to raise the matter with the parish council.
Another nearby resident, Suzy Wood, added: “I live quite close to the park and have been here since 2005. I think an attractive little playground will attract young families and I think it’s a real shame we haven’t got one. You shouldn’t stop building playgrounds because of vandalism.”
The Herald tracked down GEL, which said it was happy to work with residents and the parish council.
“In 17 years of ownership, GEL has received no annual fee or income stream for the land and no one has ever been charged or will be charged for its upkeep,” it said. “An initial fee was agreed with the developer prior to GEL’s adoption to ensure long-term management.
“This funding is used primarily for ongoing green space maintenance, such as grass cutting, litter picking and pruning. There is, however, no contingency for acts such as continuous vandalism.
“Following repetitive acts of serious vandalism and safety inspections by our play area expert, GEL consulted with the parish council and police, and reluctantly took the decision in 2009/10 to remove the ageing and badly damaged equipment.
“There was consultation to use some of our green space budget for toddler play equipment. However, it was decided this would be of limited value for many older children and there could be no guarantee the vandalism would not simply occur again and impact the maintenance budget.”
GEL added that they could transfer the ownership of the site if it was to be used to benefit the community.
“We hope local homeowners can form a residents’ association, or other similar constituted body, so we can work with them going forward,” they said.
It’s also something Wellesbourne Parish Council could support. Chairman Cllr Anne Prior told the Herald: “Yes, the council would be interested in the possibility of adopting the play area.”
