A mission has been carried out to make a privately-built children’s play area safe.
The play area in Spalding’s Crocus Walk was full of damaged and vandalised equipment, and strewn with rusty nails, broken fence posts and fly-tipped rubbish.
But it is now a safe and clean place for children to play thanks to South Holland District Council’s Pride in South Holland campaign.
The council acted swiftly following complaints from residents about the state of the play area.
Environmental Services made contact with The Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents (RoSPA) which confirmed that the play area was unsafe and recommended removal.
The owner of the play area, Boston-based Lincolnshire Developments Limited, was contacted by the council’s Environmental Health team and attempts were made to resolve the issue without taking formal action under health and safety laws.
But when Lincolnshire Developments failed to respond to all approaches it was served with a legal notice forcing it to either remove or make good the playground and equipment or face prosecution.
The firm removed the play equipment and returned the area to green space during April.
“Great work cleaning up the Crocus Lane play area, it was a right mess,” was the response of one local resident to the council’s actions.
Malcolm Chandler, district council portfolio holder for health and safety, said: “This is a great example of how council services are working together to deliver results for the people of South Holland.
“This play area was in a dreadful and dangerous state, and it is fortunate that nobody was injured using it.
“I am proud of our services which have delivered this result and pleased to see The Pride in South Holland campaign continuing to make progress for local communities.
“I look forward to seeing this continue over the coming months.”
The Pride in South Holland campaign was launched last year to clean up eyesore sites across the district.
Highlights so far include a clean up of the former Bull and Monkie pub site in Spalding and removal of more than 200 tonnes of rubbish and fly-tipped waste across the district.
