Call to reopen playground
ARUNCORN councillor has accused Halton Housing Trust of ‘shamefully’ letting down the town’s children by ‘over-egging’ vandalism issues at a public play area.
In his scathing letter to the group’s chief executive Nick Atkin, Cllr Dave Thompson said the association had shown the ‘lowest level of commitment to children’ of all the social landlords in the borough by refusing to repair and maintain Buddy’s Place in Halton Lodge.
The £130,000 park has been shut for nearly a year with Halton Housing Trust claiming vandalism is to blame.
Mr Atkin told the Weekly News that safety is the trust’s ‘primary consideration’ and that Buddy’s Place is an antisocial behaviour ‘hotspot’.
However, Cllr Thompson said the housing association has refused to provide a costing for the repairs required.
He said Christine Walker, Halton Housing Trust’s environmental service manager, has indicated that its intention is to ‘dispose of’ the play area, which was installed in 2010, and that children can access a park at Runcorn Town Hall, which Cllr Thompson said is 0.9 miles away over a busway and two main roads or 1.4 miles by car.
Cllr Thompson has said repairing vandalism damage is part of running a park, and he added that Halton Lodge Residents Association has resolved to maintain Buddy’s Place.
In his damning assessment of the trust’s parks provision, he said: “Your only two commitments to this playground site were to remove a CCTV camera used to monitor the safety of children on site and to install a fence around it.
“The fencing gets damaged because young people are trying to get to use the very facility you are denying them.”
Nick Atkin, Halton Housing Trust chief executive, said: “Due to increased damage and repairs to equipment at the park, along with repeated reports of antisocial behaviour, we took a decision to temporarily close the play area.
“Since the temporary closure was introduced, there have been several attempts to remove the safety fence.
“The area has also been a hotspot for anti-social behaviour.
“We are currently working with nearby residents and the local school to determine the best long term solution for the park.
“This includes several options, as well as possible relocation.
“The safety of our customers, especially their children, has to be our primary consideration.
“Consequently we are continuing to explore suitably safe, as well as alternative uses for the play area. I have received a letter from Cllr Dave Thompson.
“This is being responded to via the trust’s complaints procedure.” ● See Your Views: Pages 12&13