Walsall Play Strategy
Joy at massive lottery win
Delighted Walsall Council bosses are celebrating after they scooped a Big Lottery grant of more than £700,000. The main focus of the money is to improve existing children’s and young person’s facilities, to ensure the long term sustainability of the facilities and also to encourage more young people and their families to use the improved facilities.
New play equipment for children will be secured thanks to the cash windfall and four schemes will now take shape with scores of children able to use the equipment.
Councillor Louise Harrison, Walsall Council cabinet member for leisure and culture, said: “This is fantastic news. We have worked very hard on this bid and we are absolutely thrilled to have secured this massive investment in young people. This will make a real difference in people’s lives and I’m sure that children will get plenty of fun from the four projects that we can get off the ground thanks to this news.” Councillor Harrison also praised leisure officers from the greenspaces team together with the community development service who had put together the bid.
The ‘move’ project is a new purpose built 3 in 1 truck it is designed to motivate young people in Walsall to get up and move. The new truck will travel the borough moving from location to location. Children will be able to take part in innovative activities such as a wrap-around traversing wall, obstacle courses, there will also be a stage area and information networking centre as part of the initiative.
The second scheme to be funded with the lottery money will be the ‘Reach up’ project. A mobile climbing structure will see would-be Chris Bonningtons of Walsall pit their wits and discover climbing skills and self confidence. Children will be able to try their hand at rock climbing under the expert eye of trained coaches. The third project sees new equipment bought for play areas at various locations and the fourth scheme to be paid for through the grant is set to be an interactive water feature to be located at a borough park.
Councillor Garry Perry, Walsall Council cabinet member for safer, stronger communities, welcomed the windfall. He said: “Today, we live in different times and I’m sure that these four projects will really fire the imagination. It’ll be great to see children and young people from more deprived communities of Walsall try their hand at rock climbing, for example.”
Contact us
Community Development Team
Walsall Council
1st floor, Challenge Building
Hatherton Street
Walsall
WS1 1YG
Telephone 01922 654721
Fax 01922 653373
Email communitydevelopment@walsall.gov.uk