Hundreds of excited children accompanied by their parents turned out last Saturday morning 12th October for the official opening of the new play park. The rain stopped and the sun shone (for a little while) which allowed all to enjoy this special event. The local retailers including the Co-op, the Fish & Chip shop, Kerry’s Fruit & Vegetables and Hotpots Cafe all rallied round offering giveaways, discounts and “Hags” provided all the bunting, balloons, goody bags and packed lunches.
It was officially opened by the Mayor of Rushcliffe, Borough Councillor and Cotgrave Town Councillor, Mrs Christine Jeffreys. Also attending were Councillors from Cotgrave Town Council, Councillors and officers from Rushcliffe Borough Council and Nottinghamshire County Council. The new playpark is located at the newly refurbished shopping centre off Candleby Lane, Cotgrave.
The new play area offers a vast range of play equipment of which many are all-inclusive, thereby allowing all children regardless of their limitations to participate and join in the fun. Amongst the many items available are a “wheelchair/pushchair friendly” trampoline and the all new interactive “Sona” arch and bench seating for parents/carers to enjoy.
The Green Play Area has been funded by several fund providers, The FCC Communities Foundation has provided a massive grant of £48,000 towards the equipment, Rushcliffe Borough Council has given a £15,000 grant and provided all the external park fencing and turf for the play area and Nottinghamshire County Council has given a £15,000 grant from its Local Improvement Scheme. The remaining cost has been funded by Cotgrave Town Council.
Cllrs Leo Healy and Darren Stothard from Cotgrave Town Council are delighted to announce that the play park is finally complete and open for the children to enjoy and is a fantastic replacement from the old tired park which was located on The Green.
Cllr Healy said “When we started this project almost 18 months ago, our vision was to create a playpark for the future, with equipment that would be usable by all children especially our less able-bodied ones. I am sure you will agree, we have surpassed ourselves. Our suppliers are HAGS who installed most of the equipment, and JUPITER who installed the interactive “Sona” arch.”
Cllr Stothard said “This is the play facility the local children have chosen from the consultations and they are all very excited to finally be able to use all the equipment.
Cllrs Healy and Stothard are extremely grateful to all the funders, FCC Communities Foundation, Rushcliffe Borough Council and Nottinghamshire County Council who, without them, would have limited the large range and variety of play equipment.
FCC Communities Foundation previously known as WREN is a not-for-profit business that awards grants for community, biodiversity and heritage projects from funds donated by FCC Environment through the Landfill Communities Fund.
Cheryl Raynor, FCC Community Foundations local grant manager says: “We are delighted to have supported the Parish Council to bring this project to fruition, this is a fantastic facility for local people and one which can be enjoyed for years to come. FCC Communities Foundation is always happy to consider grant applications for projects that make a difference to local communities and this is a great example of what can be achieved.”
For more information about FCC Communities Foundation funding contact Cheryl Raynor at cheryl.raynor@fcccommunitiesfoundation.org.uk or visit //www.fcccommunitiesfoundation.org.uk
Nottinghamshire County Council’s Local Improvement Scheme (LIS) is a very popular discretionary budget that supports local groups and communities to make improvements to their areas.
Cllr Butler said “ We are delighted that Nottinghamshire County Council’s Local Improvement Scheme has helped fund this impressive new play park, which will be enjoyed by local young people.
It’s a great addition to the local community.”