WORK will soon begin to transform the paddling pool in King George V park into a children’s play area.
Melksham councillors voted for the project which will see the ground filled in and new turf laid, ready for new equipment to be installed. The equipment will be aimed at children aged 1-3 years-old and will be brightly coloured and water-themed.
The work is part of a long term plan to transform the park.
Local residents have expressed their disappointment that the paddling pool will not open again, but Melksham Town councillors say re-opening the paddling pool would not be cost effective, and believe a play area would be better suited.
Deputy Mayor of Melksham, cllr Jon Hubbard said, “We have allocated £20,000 to convert the paddling pool into a play area, which is the same cost of running the paddling pool for two years. The £9,000 to keep the paddling pool was for only six weeks of the summer holiday; the new play equipment will provide a safe environment for young people to play for 52 weeks of the year. It’s an all-year round facility, a fantastic investment for our park and a much better solution.”
Cllr Hayley Spencer added, “As a parent who has young children, this is very exciting. There are a lot of residents who are upset about the loss of the padding pool but what we are doing instead actually pays tribute to the paddling pool, with the water-inspired equipment.
“The sooner we can get this open the better and residents can see that we have the younger generation and families at the heart of this. We aren’t doing this to take any facilities away, we are looking towards the future and we have aspirations and this is the first step towards a really exciting future for the playing fields in Melksham, which are at the heart of the town.”
Work is expected to begin this week and will take around eight weeks to complete.
Vision for the future
The new play area is part of a long-term vision Melksham councillors have for King George V park and, having recently visited neighbouring town’s parks and play areas, architects will be brought in and a public consultation will take place to decide how best to develop the park.
Cllr Hubbard said, “Myself and a number of councillors visited Hillworth Park in Devizes and John Coles in Chippenham recently and to see what other towns are doing with their parks; it makes us very excited about the future of ours.
“We have talked a lot about what we would like to do and I’m a little concerned that we have lots of small visions about components that will go into the park, but what we really need to have is one master vision which might take us 10, 15, 20 years to achieve. A long-term plan will give us a vision of what the playing fields could become over a period of time and then what we can be doing as a council will move towards that.
“I propose we ask an expert to come and spend some time with us, and more importantly spend time with those who are using those facilities to determine what is possible, achievable and what is affordable.”
