Calder Holmes Park: Councillor's apology to annoyed parents after play equipment cordoned off at well-loved Calderdale playground

Safety issues have meant both the central tower climbing frame and slide and the rocking boat at Calder Holmes Park in Hebden Bridge have been cordoned off and out of action.

One of the two swings for older children has also been missing for some months now, and the water play area needs some work.

Councillor Josh Fenton-Glynn said he and fellow ward member for Calder Israr Ahmed have met with some of Calderdale Council’s park service to discuss the playgrounds issues.

"I’d firstly like to apologise about the level of communication around this,” he said.

"I think one thing that frustrated a lot of parents was the lack of information.”

He said he and his fellow Calder ward members have been campaigning for some time for updates to the play equipment.

"Recently two pieces of the equipment have become so damaged they have been cordoned off for safety,” he said.

"As with many things, there simply isn’t much money to invest in parks.

"Currently our budget gives about £80 per park per year.”

He said repairs to the playground’s flooring have been carried out, using up that £80.

"The central tower in the park is out of service because it became unstable,” he said. “This was probably because some older teenagers noticed a slight movement in it and used their weight to rock it more.

"We are talking to the manufacturer of the equipment about making it usable again and waiting for some parts from the manufacturer.

"The ship has two of the four springs that hold it up broken – one of which has left a sharp piece of metal protruding.

"This unfortunately isn’t as quick or cheap a repair as you’d imagine. As a result we are looking at whether a replacement piece of equipment is available and talking to Hebden Royd Town Council about funding for this.

"We will be replacing the missing swing soon and the part is on order.

"Over the long-term we are aware that the park needs updating. Calder Holmes Park is one of the councils priority ‘destination’ parks used by tourists.

"We are currently commissioning a review of all our play equipment for upkeep and also disabled accessibility that will be completed by the end of the financial year. However funding is a problem.

“We are talking to Hebden Royd Town Council about this, and I know there are attempts to set up a ‘Friends of Calder Holmes Park’ group, who will have the advantage of being able to apply for funding the council can’t.

"This is a long-term project and I appreciate people’s frustration. But please be assured we are working to get it right.”

Calder Holmes Park is popular with families, dog-walkers, skaters, walkers and footballers, and the huge popularity of Sally Wainwright’s TV drama Happy Valley has brought even more people to visit.

Residents keen to see the park get the attention it deserves have been working to form a Friends of Calder Homes Park group.