By Chris Cornford
Sandown town councillors are listening to the views of users of the Steven Jenkins Playpark, as well as consulting local school students and the wider community, following damage to the childrens’ swing, zipwire and 2 sprung animals – one incident required the local fire service to cut an adult from the swing, with the adult not repairing the damage or contacting the local council.
Town Mayor, Gary Young, said: “We know how important the playpark is to local children and families, especially following the lockdown, and we introduced increased signage to make as covid safe as possible, and were shocked by the level of vandalism that has occurred depriving children of quality facilities.”
Deputy Mayor, Paul Brading, added: “At our recent meeting we said we wanted to hear the views of those who use the park, and this is what we are doing, with a hope to commission new or replacement equipment early in the New Year, and installed well before next summer.”
The town council will be reviewing its budget at the planned December meeting, taking into account the unexpected costs of Covid compliance, as well as other initiatives undertaken since the budget was set earlier in the spring.
Cllr Young concluded: “The whole of Sandham has come on leaps and bounds in recent years, and we want to maintain the high standard of provision in the Park, but also want to try to reduce the level of anti-social behaviour which is impacting on the enjoyment of those that want to use the facilities for the purpose they have been provided.”
The questionnaire is available on the Sandown Town Council website, sandowntowncouncil.gov.uk.
Isle of Wight Observer