Rugby MP tours Parkfield Road green space

Mark Pawsey was taken on a tour of the Parkfield Road site by Rugby Borough Council's parks and grounds team.

The council, working with Newbold-on-Avon Community Partnership, has secured more than £200,000 in funding to push ahead with the ambitious plans.

Work on the project has now gathered pace, with the park set to be completed within weeks.  

Construction of the green space's play area looks set to start in September, while work on the outdoor 'green' gym should start the following month.

The green space looks set to be officially opened by the end of the year, with a sensory garden, wildlife zones, butterfly bank, picnic area and nature play trail completing the project.

Mr Pawsey said: "I am often invited to visit projects when they have been completed so I was delighted to have the opportunity to visit the Parkfield Road site whilst it was under development to see first hand how the former allotment site is being transformed into something the whole town can be proud of.

"I was very keen to see how the new green space is being developed, the use of recycled materials as hardcore and how mature trees on the site are being preserved and incorporated into the new plans.

"I am very much looking forward to visiting again when the works have been completed."

Mr Pawsey was joined on the tour of the site by Joe Newby, grant manager for WREN.

WREN, a not-for-profit business which awards grants for community, conservation and heritage projects from funds donated by FCC Environment through the Landfill Communities Fund, awarded a £75,000 grant to fund the project's play area.

Mr Newby said: "We're delighted to be supporting the Parkfield Road project and pleased our funding will provide such a fantastic facility for children and young families across Newbold and Rugby.

"WREN is always happy to consider grant applications for projects that make a difference to local communities and we're really looking forward to seeing this one take shape over the coming weeks."

In addition to the funding from WREN, the Parkfield Road project has been supported with a £100,000 grant from the Veolia Environmental Trust to create the park and wildlife zones, and a £35,000 grant from SITA Trust to build the outdoor green gym.

The Woodland Trust has also backed the project by donating more than 5,000 trees.

All the funding has come via the Landfill Communities Fund.

Cllr Lisa Parker, Rugby Borough Council portfolio holder for sustainable environment, said: "The former allotment site in Parkfield Road has been transformed within the space of a year.

"By working with the Newbold-on-Avon Community Partnership, and with the generous support of our funders, we have been able to create an outstanding green space to benefit the community for generations to come."

Photo caption: Mark Pawsey MP and Joe Newby, grant manager for WREN, took a tour of the flagship green space currently under development at Parkfield Road.