Agenda item

Consider report by Service Director Assets & Infrastructure.  (Copy attached.)

With reference to paragraph 7 of the Minute of 19 December 2020, there had been circulated copies of a report by the Service Director Assets & Infrastructure setting out the process and outcomes of engagement with Ward Members on proposals for the decommissioning of some play equipment in some play parks within the Scottish Borders as previously agreed.  The report explained that the strategic review of Play facilities was integral to the planned future investment in Outdoor Community Spaces including Public Play parks, agreed as part of the 2018/19 Capital Investment Plan and updated within the Capital Investment Plan 2019-20 and 2020/21.  The current 2020/21 capital budget included funding of £4.809m into Outdoor Community Spaces over a 10-year period.  This investment aimed to unlock community aspirations in this area creating high quality destination play parks, as well as facilities for skating and small wheels, youth shelters and opportunities for people of all ages to take part in physical activity.  Investment in these destination play parks had already completed in Galashiels (2018), Harestanes (2019), Selkirk (2016), Hawick (2017), Coldstream (2019) and Kelso (2019), with Peebles currently being procured and expected to be delivered in 2020.  This new investment created a financial revenue burden and, in order to ensure a cost neutral impact of the investment to the Council, a programme of decommissioning of aged and underutilised play equipment was required.  It was agreed in May 2018 to review the distribution of play equipment provision across play parks in the Borders, to firstly inform decision making around future investment in communities, and secondly, guide the rationalisation of play facilities which were deemed no longer fit for purpose, ensuring a cost neutral impact on established budgets.  This review resulted in proposals to decommission equipment in 74 play parks, based on assessment criteria that included location and context, play value (quality) and usage – thereby ensuring cost neutrality and the continuity of maintenance and investment across the remaining play parks.  Officers consulted on these proposals at the five Area Partnerships, with a period of public consultation inviting people’s comment on the proposals, which ended on 19 August 2019.  Two petitions were received opposing these proposals in Kelso and Hawick respectively, which were both heard at the Audit & Scrutiny Committee on 24 October 2019.  The Committee decided to recommend to Council the following:

“that Scottish Borders Council re-assesses its original decision made on 31 May 2018 in relation to the capital programme 18/19 and investment in play areas and outdoor community spaces to ‘delegate authority to the Service Director Assets and Infrastructure, after consultation with local Members, the Chief Financial Officer and the Chief Legal Officer, to declare play parks obsolete or those surplus to requirements and arrange for the removal of equipment and disposal, if appropriate.  The Service Director should be requested to prepare a fully costed report on options for future and existing play park provision for consideration at the next meeting of Council.”

Following a subsequent Members’ Sounding Board meeting to agree a way forward, this was then taken to Scottish Borders Council on 19th December 2019, where it was agreed to;

‘undertake a series of meetings, on a Ward by Ward basis, with all Members of that Ward, with detailed proposals indicating which play equipment is intended to be removed and which will be retained as part of a future programme of planned investment and upgrades’ and ‘following these meetings, the Service Director Assets & Infrastructure brings a further report initially to the Members Sounding Board on the way forward for play parks.’  

These meetings had now been held and the recommendations for the 74 play parks, following those discussions with Members were detailed in the report.  Councillor McAteer proposed an amendment to the recommendations on the basis that he felt that there were still a number of issues to resolve before he could agree to the proposed closures in his Ward.

Vote

Councillor Aitchison, seconded by Councillor Edgar, moved approval of the recommendations as set out in the report.

Councillor McAteer, seconded by Councillor Marshall, moved as an amendment that recommendation 2(b) (iii) be reworded to read “that the 2 playparks in the Hawick and Hermitage Ward at Leaburn Drive and Green Terrace be retained.”

Members voted as follows:-

Motion                      -                       25 votes

Amendment             -                       5 votes

The Motion was accordingly carried.

DECISION

DECIDED:-

(a)     to note the outcome of the Ward meetings requested by the Sounding Board;

(b)    the following;

          (i)      18 play parks, as detailed in the Appendix to the report, would be retained as agreed at the Ward meetings, and would now be opened at the earliest opportunity;

          (ii)     54 play parks, as detailed in the Appendix to the report, would be decommissioned as agreed at the Ward meetings; and

          (iii)    2 playparks would be decommissioned in the Hawick and Hermitage Ward (Leaburn Drive & Green Terrace) noting that Ward Members were unable to agree to the proposal.