Cranbrook’s play area is open for business

East Devon District Council has announced that the long-awaited play area at Cranbrook is now open for the serious business of kids having fun.

There will be no official opening at present, as there is still quite a bit of cosmetic work to do on the site – which will be completed later in the year by the contractors working for the consortium of house builders at Cranbrook.

Some parts of the play area have been roped off to allow grass seed to take a hold and make the site look more attractive. Other parts of the site need to be seeded, but it is the wrong time of year for this to be successful.

An EDDC spokesman said: “We know that parents and children at Cranbrook are keen to see the play area open in time for the summer holidays. There have been unavoidable delays to the works due to the very wet winter saturating the site and we thank everyone for their patience. The equipment is now in place and ready for the children to enjoy.

“The site looks a bit rough and ready and won’t win any awards for landscaping at the moment, but we are hoping that people will look past that to the fact that the equipment can now be used and the children can let off steam in a purpose built environment”.

The site needs to be secured against access by unauthorised vehicles and signage will also be provided so people know who to contact in the event of any maintenance issues.

The council is waiting to hear from the consortium as to when contractors expect to be able to return to the play area to complete the landscaping work. This is unlikely to happen before September and it’s probable that the site would be out of action for a short time while the work was carried out – preferably during term-time.

Councillor Ray Bloxham, an EDDC Cabinet Member who lives in Cranbrook, said: “I’m delighted that the play area is open at last in time for the summer holiday. It’s not ideal that the site looks a bit scruffy, but the equipment is in place and I’m sure the youngsters will get hours of enjoyment on it and won’t mind too much that it’s not a green oasis. I’d like to thank children and parents for their patience and also the construction teams for getting the equipment ready in the nick of time”.

The Multi Use Games Area (MUGA) is also taking shape next to the play area and this is expected to be completed early in August.