FROSDHAM Town Council have leased land at Townfield Lane from the Free Grammar School charitable trust for many years and use the land as a play area consisting of swings, climbing frame, a couple of slides and a kick-about area.
The trust deed specifies that the income from the lease must be used to support Frodsham CE Primary School.
This is the only play area to the east of Fluin Lane. The existing play equipment doesn’t meet current standards for play areas and needs replacing on Health and Safety grounds.
The current lease came to an end in December 2016 and the Town Council has been offered a new 20-year lease at £1,500 a year with regular rent reviews (£30,000 at least in total), an increase of £400 per year.
In 2012 Frodsham Town Council adopted a Play Strategy that found most of the town’s play areas needed bringing up to current standards. Townfield Lane Play Area was identified as second priority after Churchfields, which received a new play area in 2015.
The much larger Churchfield play area cost £100k, but the Town Council received significant grant aid towards the cost. They will seek grant assistance to replace the Townfield Lane equipment, but will need to supplement the grant from Town Council funds.
Councillors are considering whether it would be better to commit the £30,000 (cost of lease) towards new play equipment on land that they own behind the Community Centre, which would more accessible to residents from all parts of Frodsham, rather than renewing the lease and equipment at Townfield Lane. Previous consultation has suggested that a fenced toddler play area is needed.
Frodsham Town Council would like to gauge the opinions of its residents so invites you to indicate which of the three options below you would prefer.
Please complete the form by clicking the link below and return to FTC or go to www.frodsham.gov.uk to complete on-line by 31 March 2017. This information will be collated into a report to inform Councillors in their decision making:
Option 1 Remove play equipment and return the land at Townfield Lane to the Trust, without replacing the play facility
Option 2 Renew the lease at Townfield Lane and replace the equipment
Option 3 Use £30,000 towards new play area at Frodsham Community Centre
1 Comment
The council are not now being asked to fund any increase in rent. There have already been two FTC consultations about the park – both of which returned unanimous votes to keep it. The only cost now to FTC is to upgrade the equipment and money was earmarked for this a while ago. So why is this consultation going ahead?
This is from 2013:
TOWNFIELD LANE PLAY AREA
IMPROVEMENT PLANS
Following initial face to face consultations with
residents, and ideas expressed to us, Frodsham
Town Council now wants to proceed with the
much needed and overdue facelift for Townfield
Lane Play Area.
We have come up with this first draft sketch plan
of the improvements. The scheme includes a timber
climbing frame, hexagonal frame swings, zip wire and
a fenced off toddler area with trampoline, spinning
bowl and climbing frame & slide. Also included are
improvements to the pathways, a football pitch and
picnic benches.
Larger copies can be viewed at FTC’s office in
Castle Park House Monday to Friday 9am to 1pm.
Comments are welcome from all townspeople by
6th July to:
Hazel Catt – Service Manager
Frodsham Town Council, Castle Park House, Castle
Park, Frodsham, WA6 6SB
or email [email protected]