Adventure playground improvement plans approved
The plans will see the council tender for contracts for the operation and facilities management of the five adventure playgrounds in the borough.
They support the delivery of one of the key commitments put forward in Lewisham Council’s Play Strategy for 2023-2028, which is to keep adventure playgrounds open, adequately staffed and operated, and in a good state of repair.
The council already commissions a third-party provider to run play activities at adventure playground sites and this arrangement is coming to its planned end. These new plans will broaden the scope of this partnership approach. As well as providing an accessible play offer at adventure playground sites that would cater for children of all abilities, providers will be supported and expected to maximise opportunities for generating income, for example by offering venue hire or organising fundraising initiatives. These will be used to make much-needed improvements to play facilities and guarantee the long-term sustainability of the borough’s adventure playgrounds.
Lewisham is already one of the top five boroughs in London for the number of adventure play sites. However, in common with other local authorities the council has faced significant challenges in maintaining its adventure playgrounds owing to rising costs and ageing facilities.
In recognising that these challenges cannot be met by the council alone, these plans will enable the council to draw upon the knowledge, experience and income-generating potential of partners across the youth and play sectors.
By giving providers the flexibility to explore income generation and external funding opportunities, the plans will in time make it possible to extend opening hours for free access to the playgrounds for Lewisham children and encourage increased usage of the adventure playgrounds.
Contracts will start in December this year and run for a period of five years. The contract length will enable providers to recruit and retain permanent staff to deliver a more consistent and frequent service across the adventure playground sites. The council will also make additional budget available to providers to support their business development and fundraising activities.
The plans will ensure that adventure play activities will remain at all five sites in the borough:
- Honor Oak Adventure Playground
- The Richard MacVicar Adventure Playground
- Dumps Adventure Playground
- Ladywell Fields Adventure Playground
- Home Park Adventure Playground
Councillor Chris Barnham, Cabinet Member for Children and Young People, said:
“We want our young people to have access to high-quality and accessible adventure playgrounds and this was rightly identified as a key priority in the council’s Play Strategy last year. We’re already proud of our status as one of London’s leading adventure play boroughs but the reality of local government financial pressures, coupled with ageing facilities that are reaching the end their anticipated lifespan, means that we can’t continue to do this this alone.
“We’re looking to build a partnership approach which enables us to draw on the expertise and income-generating capabilities of the wider youth and play sectors. We believe these plans will ultimately put us in a stronger position to be able to deliver the quality and range of adventure play facilities that our young people want and deserve.”