You have told us that the basketball hoops in Sandfield Road park are well used, and we’d like a pitch to be marked out so that proper matches can be played – we understand that an unofficial basketball tournament is held there one day every summer.
You also told us in our ward spend surveys that you wanted us to encourage youth and well-being activities so we have allocated £25.00 from our ward budget to have a pitch marked out.
The hoops are already there, and the work will be carried out in the summer.
The plan for proposed improvements to the play area in Sandfield Road park have been released, and David and I have contacted local residents for their views.
The new basket swing and double swings have already been installed. Other improvements include
improved goalmouth
new zip wire/cableway
new jungle swing (tractor tyre swing, not a rope swing a la Tarzan!)
new skate learner steps and concrete wheels path for scooters, bikes and roller skates
But the item that is proving most controversial is the potential removal of fencing around the play area for the youngest children. The reason given for this is that it would open up the play area to the wider park and enable children to easily access all areas. But it appears that the motivation for this move may be financial.
The plans are too complex to upload to this site. We have leafleted folk in Staunton Road and most of Sandfield Road with copies and will email residents living in the rest of Sandfield Road, Headley Way, Woodlands Road, Woodlands Close and Beech Road who are on our e-list. The proposal to remove the fencing is subject to consultation and some of the nearest houses will be leafleted about this in due course – meanwhile David and I have already received a number of phone calls and emails from residents, all of whom are opposed to this option.
If you would like us to send you a copy of the plan please get in touch, or you are welcome to leave your comments on this site (see Contact Us! above). If you wish to join our mailing list for all such local issues, please let us know.
The formal opening ceremony for the play area is going to be on Friday 23rd September from 3.30- 4pm. This was delayed until the children were back at school so that they can be involved, and there are a couple of extra items about to be added!
Jamie Murray and the Groundwork Team are to be congratulated on their imaginative planning, and have made the grant money stretch as far as possible!
Final proposals have been made for the play area now that funding has been confirmed. The proposed design will be on display at St. Andrews School, London Road, Headington on Monday 29th Novemberbetween 3pm and 7pm.
Please feel free to drop in and view the proposals as this will be a final opportunity to make comments before orders are placed for equipment and materials.
The design will also be on display at Bury Knowle Library for people to drop in and view from 29th November.
Please do pass this information on to anyone else you think may be interested in viewing the proposed design.
Here is an update from last night’s open meeting.The news is good in that they are going to retain a couple of pieces of toddler play equipment after all, and they are hoping to put a proper boundary around the play area comprising hedges and fencing, both wooden and metal, so that should sort out the concern about dogs.And yes! there WILL be a zip wire! And a ship like structure (allegedly), a rope bridge over a hollowed out pit, a low wall children can climb over but high enough to keep the dogs out, a sandpit, big stones/rocks to walk on, springy ‘stepping stone’ platforms to walk on or springy ride-ons, etc. The theme is to use natural materials like wood and stone whenever possible to tie in with the park’s featuresI’ve asked them about further consultation, they say they’d like to put out the contract to tender by 6 September, and we discussed the possibility of them putting up their design plans in either Bury Knowle Library or the Baptist Church towards the end of the month so people can look at them and make comments – they don’t have these plans finalised yet but may be able to provide a link electronically at some point in the near future, I’ll post it up when I
get it
Some good points from parents this afternoon – face the slide away from the sun as it gets too hot, and put a slope up in front of the swings to stop toddlers running in front of them and getting hit. Lots of questions about disabled access too. Toddler play equipment appears to be divvied up across the whole area rather than in one toddler zone – views, anyone?
Notional timelines liable to slippage: order equipment beginning of October, start the work mid November, complete January 2011 though subject to weather conditions. Fortunately delays in the process have meant work won’t take place over the summer, that’s a relief!
Bury Knowle Park has also been awarded a £47,000 Playbuilder grant following consultation with my colleagues in the Friends of Bury Knowle Park Group and with local school-children and their parents.
Hooray! We’ll all meet up shortly to discuss what will be done and when!
Sandfield Road has been awarded a £46,000 Playbuilder grant following the consultation sessions with local residents and school children.
This is great news for us all and there will soon be further consultation on what changes will be made and when – thank you to everyone who came to the meetings and gave us your ideas, and to those in Sandfield Road and Staunton Road who wrote down their comments in the residents’ surveys David and I brought round. We couldn’t have done it without you!
Ideas for improving the play area have been suggested at local community workshops and from workshops at St Joseph’s school. One final open meeting will be held in the Sandfield Rd park play area on Sat 27 February from 10.00-11.00 (if the weather is bad, the meeting will adjourn to the St Antony of Padua Community Hall)
So if you want to have your say, please come and join us!
Consultation for a new look to three play areas in Oxford will take place over the next week.
Residents are being asked to get involved in consultation for Cutteslowe Bowling Green development, and two possible new Playbuilder parks at Bury Knowle and Sandfield Road.
On Friday 29 January there will be the Sandfield Road Playbuilder workshop from 5pm to 7pm at St Anthony’s Church Community hall.
The event is being hosted by Groundwork Thames Valley who are project managing the £2.5 million play area refurbishment programme for Oxford City Council.
If for any reason, you are not able to make it to the park on this date, please email oxfordplay@groundwork.org.uk with any comments.
You are invited to a consultation event on Monday 25th January from 7pm to 9pm at St. Andrew’s School, Headington
We would like as much involvement from residents, young people
and members of the local community as possible so please attend.
We would like to give more information about the proposal and
generate ideas for the refurbishment of the play area at Bury Knowle Park based on community needs.
If you have any queries or suggestions that you would like to voice
about the proposed refurbishment, or would like to get involved in
the scheme then please contact Groundwork at:
oxfordplay@groundwork.org.uk or on 07969 546494
