Play it right for Erewash
Over 24,000 young people in Erewash will soon benefit from a range of exciting play opportunities made possible by Big Lottery funding as the Council begins work on its first ever Play Strategy.
The Big Lottery Fund is rolling out its £124 million Children's Play programme this year, with funds being made available to every local authority area in England. Councils seeking funding from the Big Lottery are required to develop a local Play Strategy to address the need for play opportunities in local communities.
The Culture and Leisure Services Department at Erewash Borough Council has now been given the go ahead to apply for its provisional allocation of £253,368 from the Big Lottery Fund; which will be used to improve play across the borough , but this funding will only be available if a Play Strategy is delivered.
Officers have already started developing the strategy through the formation of a Play Partnership, looking at the quality and location of existing play areas and a planned consultation event with children and young people, which is set to take place early next year.
To look further into the issues surrounding play for local children and young people, the Council will host an all day conference for interested parties and individuals on Friday 8th December 2006 at West Park Leisure Centre in Long Eaton. The conference will help to create a vision and scope for the development of an Erewash Play Strategy.
Councillor David Stephenson, Lead Member for Culture and Leisure Services said “There are over 24,000 children and young people in Erewash and they deserve services which reflect what they want not what adult’s think they should have.
“While we have playgrounds that address the needs of younger children, we are aware that we need to do more for teenagers. Our Play Strategy will aim to address this by improving the quality and diversity of the services we and others offer.
“The benefits of play are numerous. Active children are healthier, more creative, and more socially aware as a result of exercise and the interaction that play promotes. We hope our application to the Big Lottery fund will be successful to help us address the gaps which we know we have and put in place priorities for the future.”
Interested parties who wish to attend the event can register by contacting Emma Hubball on 0845 907 22 44 extension 3212 or email emma.hubball@erewash.gov.uk