Things are progressing! The study Playscape: A Vision for Great Shelford was presented by the Playscape Working Group (PWG) to the the Pavilion and Recreation Ground Sub-Committee (PRGC) on April 7th, the full Parish Council on April 13th and the Annual Parish Meeting on April 16th.

The study reviews the existing play facilities on Great Shelford’s Recreation Ground and proposes a plan for their improvement.  We conclude that  the present equipment is in poor condition, is not inclusive of certain age groups or abilities, and the setting lacks any shelter or sense of place. In short it is uninspiring. Three options for improving the provision are then outlined. Namely, Maintenance and piece-meal replacement,  refurbishment with Playground Company, and Full redesign using a Landscape Architect.

In the light of its review the PWG recommended a full re-design with a Landscape Architect as the option best suited to address the identified issues and in the study we present a ‘Vision for Great Shelford’. We believe that this should include the playground area, the skate ramp and the copse area by the river – using landscaping, planting, new equipment and surfaces, whilst also tying the Pavilion into the scheme.

We will be distributing copies of the report around the village and uploading it to the website in due course.  Since going to press the PC will have voted on our proposal, so far the PRGC has recommended we pursue option 3: a full redesign using a Landscape Architect, which we are very pleased about.  We will have also started conducting our focus groups; so far meeting the scouts and beavers to listen to their views and involve them with the project, with more opportunities to engage with other groups in the pipeline.

We now have a domain name www.shelfordplayscape.org and a new email info@shelfordplayscape.org, the website is kindly being built and hosted by local resident Dave Jones of platformtwenty.  We are now setting our sights on setting up a charity to help the fundraising initiative and embarking on the next phase.  This is an exciting and ambitious project for the village and we would really appreciate any help and expertise you can offer. Please do get in touch! PWG