Half a million pounds set aside for Sheffield park revamp project

Oxley Park, in Stocksbridge, will get a £500,000 revamp following a bid to the Towns Fund Accelerated funding pot, in partnership with Stocksbridge Community Leisure Centre on behalf of the Stocksbridge Town Deal Board.

It was approved in a cabinet meeting this week.

The money will help deliver a project creating new, more accessible and overlooked play facilities linked with improvements to the leisure centre.

Councillor Mary Lea, cabinet member for culture, parks and leisure, said in the meeting: “It is a significant amount of money, and it does go on playgrounds, paths, car parking and other things. But that money would not have been available if it wasn’t planned and ready to go and those plans take years sometimes in the making so I just want to thank the Friends of Oxley Park and the leisure centre up there and councillor Julie Grocutt who was also involved in this. Without those people this wouldn’t have been a project that was ready to get that money, it’s really well deserved and the plans don’t stop there, there will be more to come.”

Council officers said existing facilitates at the park were limited, in poor condition and needed significant investment. Play equipment is currently restricted to one set of swings in an inaccessible area of the site and the footpath around the area is poor, making some areas difficult to access.

Plans include creating an outdoor seating terrace and toddler play area for the new Leisure Centre Cafe linking into the park, a new children’s playground with fixed equipment and a natural play theme and infrastructure such as access routes, landscaping and additional bike and car parking provision.

Vic Faulkner from the Friends of Oxley Park, said: “We are excited to see that funding has been secured for much needed play facilities in Oxley Park and are looking forward to progressing this and future phases of improvements.”

Work is expected to begin on site in early 2021 to deliver the new playground and wider site improvements.

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