Wave 2
Playbuilder Grant
Arun District Council application for
WestPark Play Area,
Aldwick
May 2009
Arun District Council Wave 2 funding application
1.0 CONTACT INFORMATION
1.1 Name of organisation applying for the grant
Arun District Council
1.2 Lead person responsible for the delivery of the scheme
Philippa Dart
1.3Contact details of lead person/organisation
Head of Parks & Greenspace,
Arun District Council,
BognorRegisTown Hall,
Clarence Road,
Bognor Regis,
West Sussex
PO21 1LD
Tel: 01903 737913
Email:
2.0INFORMATION ON THE PROPOSED SITE
2.1Name of the scheme and name by which the site is known
WestPark Play Area
2.2Site address
Silverston Avenue
Aldwick
West Sussex
PO21 2FZ
2.3 Site owner
Arun District Council
2.4 Is planning permission required?
No
2.5What is the nature of the development?
Refurbishment/extension
2.6Proposed completion and opening date to the public
Completion Autumn 2009, opening 31st March 2010
2.7Please indicate what access routes are available for the site and if there are any safety issues associated with accessibility. Please confirm that all access routes are suitable for children and young people with special needs especially in relation to any associated mobility issues
The main site access is through the car park to the east of the current play area, however there are a number of other pedestrian access points to the south and north across the park itself. The area is already a popular destination for local families and visitors who make use of the current play area, café and recreation area of the site for informal leisure activities and dog walking amongst other things.
The current site is not totally Wheelchair accessible although wheelchairs and buggies can access the play area over the grass most of the year.
2.8Details of any future developments that could affect the scheme
Arun District Council parks & open space are protected by the Local Plan
“The District Council will protect public and private open spaces, playing fields, outdoor sports facilities and children’s play facilities from development other than associated recreational development.”
The location is identified on the attached plan.
3.0 Partnerships – Matched Funding
3.1 Name any partners involved in the proposed scheme
None
3.2 Details of any proposed associated match funding
N/A
3.3Are the playbuilder funds being used to support a larger scheme?
No
3.4 If applicable please indicate at what stage you are at in securing any match funding
N/A
4.0THE SCHEME
4.1Who is the scheme aimed at and which local schools, housing estates and areas will the scheme provide for?
The scheme will primarily be aimed at local children and visitors to the area who already use this popular facility in large numbers particularly during the summer months. The site is also within walking distance along the promenade or a short car journey from Bognor Town Centre which will allow those people in the deprived wards surrounding Aldwick to make use of the site as well.
Local schools include BognorCommunity College, MichaelAyresJuniorSchool, The Glade infants, Nyewood Infant/Junior School and RoseGreenJuniorSchool
4.2What are the identified needs that you are aiming to address via this scheme and how have/will you identify these needs?
Arun contains a number of Wards which fare poorly in comparison with a number of national and regional statistics including the low life expectancy, low income, high housing prices, low educational attainment.
There are a number of local strategies that through consultation with local people and organisations identified the needs of local people within Arun. It is our aim to help deliver a scheme that will meet these needs.
These include Arun’s Sustainable Community Strategy, Community Cohesion Strategy, and Every Young Person in Arun Matters.
These identified needs include:
- Opportunities to enjoy good physical and emotional health and healthy lifestyle
- Healthy weight for all ages, particularly children and young people
- Play areas for children of different ages
- Working towards social inclusion
- Areas where more young people can go safely with friends to hang out
- Discouraging bullying especially in children’s play areas
- More than 17% of children who live in Arun (4,000+) are from low income households, increasing their need for safe, accessible and free play space
- Creative use of open spaces
- Changes planned in consultation with young people
This gives us framework to base our concept and project delivery on, and by direct consultation at the design stage the scheme will have addressed all of the identified needs by the time it is complete.
Arun’s Play Strategy ‘Big Play in Arun’ and the Government Department of Children, Schools and Families National Play Strategy also identify a number of needs and set objectives to meet these. These objectives are discussed in section 5.9
4.3How do/have you propose/d to engage potential users of the scheme in the design, development and implementation of the scheme?
We plan to engage current and potential users through various advertised consultation exercises in the design and development stage. Our Landscape team have a lot of previous experience consulting on play refurbishment schemes, skate park refurbishments and extensive planting schemes.
A key aspect of this consultation will be to provide sufficient information on the ideas behind inclusive/natural play to our target audiences as this is likely to be a concept that they are unfamiliar with and may not embrace initially.
In June this year as part of a Big Lottery Fund initiative Arun’s Parks & Greenspace Service is employing two ‘Play Rangers’ whose aim is to facilitate exiting outdoor/environmental play in the deprived wards of Wick and Bersted. One of the key roles of these posts will be to observe and monitor the types of play that children engage in in differing environments and to use this knowledge alongside direct consultation with users of the play ranger scheme and other local children to further influence the designs of the scheme.
There will be an obvious opportunity to consult with current users whilst on site and this will be achieved through a consultation day held at the site during June/July. The event will have a stand manned by Parks staff, showing concept designs and ideas and with an interactive element (for example samples of natural materials) and will allow users to comment on all aspects of the principal and specific design elements.
It will also be important to try and reach those people and minority groups who may not ordinarily access the scheme. This would be done using various partners for of the Arun Community Cohesion Group for example the Expanding Communities Team who can identify specific groups to target and how best to achieve this.
In terms of the implementation it would certainly be of benefit to involve potential users to help create a further sense of ownership. See section 5.7 for details of how we plan to achieve this.
4.4How have/will you determine where the best location is for the scheme?
The existing play area site is an ideal site to extend for this scheme because it already contains a good range of fixed play opportunities and is close to the café, and visible from the road and over looked by adjacent properties, which discourages anti social behaviour.
4.5How will the placement of the scheme complement its surroundings?
WestPark is a popular site containing a range of mature and young tree specimens and shrubs, amenity grass areas and is situated within 50 yards of the beach. Any play scheme offering a variety of natural play elements will blend in nicely with the areas landscape.
4.6 What are the key elements to the scheme – what are you aiming to provide?
The key to this scheme is that it provides an opportunity for all age ranges but particularly 8-13 year olds to enjoy, play, interact and learn all in an outdoor environment.
Another key aim is that the refurbishment in keeping with the local landscape/history/geology to create a sense of place that offers an opportunity to direct or facilitate play by providing themed structured areas, but also provides an opportunity for imaginative play and innovation in open spaces that have the potential to evolve depending on use and the local needs.
We aim to provide shade and static form by using natural structures such as plants and rocks, as well as man made structures. Loose materials which compliment the natural landscape such as sand will also be used to provide a moveable, interactive play opportunity within the setting.
It is also our aim to make the scheme as accessible and beneficial as possible to those with disabilities by removing physical barriers and by using the elements above. It will also be key to meet the needs of carers and parents too by providing facilities whereby they can relax, talk and interact with others.
4.7What are the different types of play that will be offered?
- Role play – play exploring ways of being
- Creative play – Play which allows a new response, awareness of new connections, with an element of surprise
- Deep play – play which allows the child to encounter risky experiences to conquer fear – e.g heights
- Object play – sequences of hand eye manipulations/movements
- Imaginative play – play where conventional rules, which govern the physical world do not apply
- Fantasy Play – play which rearranges the world in a child’s way, a way which is unlikely to occur
- Exploratory play – play to access factual information consisting of manipulative behaviours e.g handling, throwing, banging objects
- Social play – Play during which the rules for social engagement and interaction can be revealed, explored and amended
- Symbolic play – play which allows control, gradual exploration and increased understanding without the risk of being out of one’s depth
4.8What are the key outcomes you aim to achieve and for whom?
An all inclusive play space providing an array of fixed play equipment and natural materials/play features which strikes the correct balance between risk and benefit and which will ultimately benefit the local people and visitors particularly 8-13 year olds, and be a source of pride/focal point for large parts of the community.
4.9What other facilities if any, are associated to or are located on the proposed site?
Café
Amenity grass area for recreation/leisure
Toilets
4.10Approximately how many children within 8-13 years age range do you anticipate accessing the site and what if known is that as a percentage to the whole population of that age range that the scheme will provide for?
Local residents approx 1,000 per annum
Visitors approx 1,500 per annum
4.11Please indicate any particular groups of children/young people, if any do you intend to benefit from the scheme in relation to Black and minority ethnic groups, travellers etc?
Bognor Regis, located to the east of Aldwick, has a high population of Eastern European migrant workers/communities who have arrived over the last few years. We will look to market improvements to WestPark play area via the Council for Voluntary Service (CVS) Expanding Communities Team who produce newsletters in 5 different languages containing all sorts of information on the local area. We would look to use this avenue again to advertise improved play facilities to these groups.
4.12How will you accommodate necessary changes to the site over time to continue to meet the identified needs of users?
The incorporation of ‘slack’ spaces in to the scheme will allow for potential evolution of the space and will also allow an area for children to use their own imagination in how they make use of the area
4.13Is there additional space on the site for open/flexible usage and how will you continue to engage with users over these changes over time?
As above – Yes, and we will continue to engage via user consultation at both peak and off peak times and by observing how the site used, by whom and for what etc
4.14How will you deal with any emerging issues between different users of the site in relation to bullying, harassment, community conflict and so forth?
Arun has both a Crime & Disorder Reduction Partnership & Community Cohesion Group in place made up of representatives for various partner organisations such as the Local Strategic Partnership, Sussex Police, Arun District Council and the Voluntary sector. Any issues which fall within the remits of these groups can be fed in to the various channels available (e.g. expanding communities team, Joint Action Group) to ensure they are dealt with effectively through the appropriate channels.
4.15What natural elements are you proposing to incorporate in to your scheme e.g natural features, landscaping and so forth, and how will these create as wide range of play opportunities?
Please see the attached plan illustrating the proposed scheme.
We will look to incorporate the following natural features that can provide a play opportunity as an individual feature or as part of a collective broader landscape.
Loosefill material e.g.sand
Monoliths
Stone
Shrubs/Herbaceous Plants
Wood
These different features which provide a range of textures, shapes, smells, form and character which by their very nature provide a wide range of play opportunities to facilitate the different types of play identified in section 4.7 of this application.
5.0ASSOCIATED DETAILS
5.1Please give clear details of how you will manage the health & safety of all aspects of the scheme including the build
Design phase
This is guided by the Managing Risk in Play Provision: Implementation guide. The play area has been designed to these principles; that there will be a balance between the risks and benefits of the facilities provided within the new scheme.
Construction phase
Health and safety is managed in a number of ways during this phase.
Contractors selection – only contractors who are recognised as experienced in play area construction and certificated through Construction Line and /or CHAS (Contractors Health and Safety Assessment Scheme) will be selected to tender work relating to the play equipment installation.
CDM Regulations – the regulation will not apply to this project however the principles to manage Health and Safety will apply during the project. This includes the production of a design risk register for contractors to provide a method statement against the identified risks during this phase.
The project will be managed by the Parks and Greenspace Landscape section which includes Chartered Landscape Architects who are qualified to project manage all aspects of the construction including the health and safety issues.
Following implementation of the scheme, the site will continue to be inspected on a weekly basis by Council Officers, trained in play area inspection. Once per month a full engineers inspection will be carried out. (see 5.3 for details of maintenance contracts)
Arun District Council also contacts Zurich insurance services to undertake 6 monthly inspections of all its play areas, as well as commissioning a full independent risk assessment every two years.
5.2Please give details of how you will achieve the risk benefit balance within the design of the scheme
By applying and considering the principles of the risk/benefit Play England guide publication to our designs specifically Managing Risk in Play Provision: Implementation Guide, and using industry experts to formally risk assess the proposals prior to works.
5.3Please give details of the proposed maintenance schedule for the scheme that you will complete within a years cycle, as a maximum if applicable
Arun District Council has in place a flexible play area maintenance and repairs contract with Foster Playscapes which operates between Monday to Friday and via emergency call out at weekends.
A mobile unit carries out required repairs and maintenance guided by the results of weekly inspections carried out by Arun engineers and Parks staff trained in playground inspections. Any faults that pose a serious Health & Safety risk will be phoned through directly to the repairs team an can normally be dealt with in as little as 30 minutes to one hour. Arun’s Parks Manager meets weekly with Foster Playscapes to run through the actions & priorities following inspections.
5.4Please give details of how you will fund the above maintenance schedule in both the short and long term and how you will achieve long term sustainability especially in relation to capital funding for future developments and adaptations to the play space
Because Arun has in place contract with Foster Playscapes which runs to 2012 as a minimum (with the option to extend to 2017) the budget for play area maintenance is secured. This budget also allows enough flexibility to purchase replacement items of play equipment, and for adaptations. In addition to this a small sum of capital budget is available to replace larger items.