Whitehall Rec play area plans secure £75,000 grant

Rugby Borough Council has been awarded the grant from the Veolia Environmental Trust to help push ahead with plans to build a new play area at the park off Hillmorton Road.

The new play area forms part of an ambitious project to revamp the park, unveiled by the council earlier this year.

Work scheduled for the first phase of the revamp includes a new play area, skate park and the restoration of the park's bandstand.

Other work earmarked for later phases of the project includes improving accessibility to the war memorial, tree planting, renovating the park's pathways, building an outdoor gym and installing pieces of public art.

A public consultation on the revamp was launched in April and the council intends to incorporate residents' ideas into the final designs for the project - starting with the play area.

Cllr Lisa Parker, Rugby Borough Council portfolio holder for environment and public realm, said: "We've had an enthusiastic response from residents to the public consultation on the Whitehall Rec revamp and we're still keen to hear feedback and include residents' ideas in our plans.

"This generous grant from the Veolia Environmental Trust means we can now finalise the draft design for the new play area and push ahead with one of the key elements of the project."

The Veolia Environmental Trust awards grants through the Landfill Communities Fund to support community and environmental projects.

Since the trust was established 20 years ago it has supported more than 2,000 projects and provided grants totalling more than £72 million.

Paul Taylor, executive director of Veolia Environmental Trust, said: "We are really pleased to be able to support this exciting project and we look forward to seeing the completed play space being used and enjoyed."

The draft design for the new play area looks set to be published next month. Residents can view the design, find out more about the Whitehall Recreation Ground revamp and take part in the public consultation by visiting www.rugby.gov.uk/whitehallrec