Last year, One Trafford enlisted the help of an Altrincham resident, Lila McElhinney, in choosing a brand-new climbing frame for Stamford Park.
The eight-year-old youngster wrote to her local councillors about how much she misses the old monkey bars at Stamford Park. Unbeknown to Lila, the park had already been identified for improvements as part of the 2019-2020 green space capital programme.
Following a consultation with the Friends of Park’s group, a number of climbing frame options suitable for the available space at Stamford Park were put forward to Lila and her friends. Lila’s chosen option has now been made into reality by One Trafford.
The ‘pick-up-sticks’ climbing frame, which features monkey bars, has now been installed in a new location within the junior play area. Sitting on 89m2 of Grasslok safety surface, the climbing frame is now situated away from the tree canopy, allowing more sunlight to cast over the new unit. This will allow the timber to dry off properly following rainy or damp weather.
Lila said: “I’m so excited about getting a new climbing frame at Stamford Park, with monkey bars! I’m so happy to be able to be part of this because I’ve been coming to Stamford Park since I was little.”
Lia’s mum, Lucy McElhinney, said: “We’re very proud of Lila for getting herself, her friends and her local councillor behind a campaign for something that is very important to her. It shows that people power and working together can bring something positive to the community.”
All play areas, including Stamford Park’s play areas, still remain closed to reduce the spread of the Coronavirus.
Executive Councillor for Culture and Leisure, Cllr Liz Patel said: “Thank you to Lila and her friends for getting involved with this project and for showing us your passion for your local park. It is so encouraging to know that our younger residents are so keen to get involved with their local area. We’re really pleased with the outcome of the new play area. We know that when we are able to safely reopen play areas, that the climbing frame will be well loved.
“One Trafford’s teams are continuing to maintain play areas even when closed, so that when we are able to reopen them, everyone can play and enjoy safely.
“Parks and green spaces are really important to our health and well-being, which is why we are committed to continually improve and maintain Trafford’s open spaces. The new capital programme will be announced shortly with more improvement schemes to the borough parks and green spaces.”
The new 2020/21 parks and green space capital programme will be listed on the dedicated webpage, where full details can be found. For updates, visit www.trafford.gov.uk/parkmaintenance.
To find your local park, please visit www.trafford.gov.uk/Parks