Playground trustees in plea to city mayor over ‘obstacle’ leases
SIX of Leicester’s adventure playgrounds are asking city mayor Sir Peter Soulsby to help secure their long-term futures.
In a letter sent to Sir Peter and shared with the Mercury, representatives of Braunstone, Highfields, New Parks, Northfields, St Andrews and Woodgate adventure playgrounds are seeking longer leases “at this critical point in the playgrounds’ history”.
The play areas are on one-year leases, which trustees describe as “a genuine obstacle in attracting longterm, sustainable funding” from non-council sources.
While cash has been set aside for the financial year 2024/25, the city council has said it will struggle in subsequent years to fund any service it has no legal duty to provide.
The playgrounds offer free, indoor and outdoor activities for children, with the council providing funding for school holidays.
The council has said it wants to work with play associations to help them develop business plans and identify new sources of funding.
The authority is also looking into how it might support the playgrounds through transfer of its sites or longer leases with a low rent.
In the letter to Sir Peter, trustees of the playgrounds say: “Having supported our continued funding over
ONE-YEAR AGREEMENTS ‘DETERRING
the previous decades, we are asking you to urgently address the issue of our security of tenure.
“This is a necessity for us to secure the large-scale funding we need and gives us the opportunity to survive the next 12 months and flourish beyond.
“We’d also then be in a position to work in partnership with the council on the targeted new initiatives that have been mentioned throughout this process.
“We are fully aware of the authority’s financial situation as a result of the reduction in central government funding and we welcomed your commitment to our funding, over this financial year at the full council meeting of February 21.
“For this funding to provide the foundation for our successful continuation, we need the issue around our leases and subsequent asset transfers to be dealt with with a sense of urgency.
“Without security of tenure we are a far less attractive proposition to potential funders and in turn less able to build upon other, alternative income streams. We are aware of many other city-based organisations who currently hold extended leases and some who have taken up the asset transfer option, so are hopeful this is a rectifiable situation.
“We know you’ll be aware that the playgrounds are much-loved projects that have served the city’s most economically disadvantaged communities for over half a century and that you will take this last and immediate opportunity to intervene, giving them the best chance of future survival.”