A popular Nottinghamshire playground has been forced to close after it was vandalised. William Lee Park in Calverton, could be closed for "weeks" following an attack on one of the playing apparatus on the site.
Following the incident, on Monday, May 29, which reportedly involved a member of the public jumping from one of the climbing frames towers onto a level of decking, and smashing through, Calverton Parish Council said it has been forced to close the well-used park until it can find a solution.
Chairman of Calverton Parish Council, Andrew Meads, said: "We are lucky we have two parks in the village and this one, we can lock the park off.
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"Playing equipment is heavily regulated. So it's not like someone can go and fix it today - it's got to be passed by an inspector, so we're trying to find out whether we can fix it ourselves or whether we need to get Hags (the playground supplier) to come and do it - it could be a couple of weeks."
"Play equipment is so expensive. We've just had two zip wires and a climbing frame on the other park and that was £71,000. It's a phenomenal amount."
The council added that James Seeley Park, the other play area in the village, it set to have a large sum of money invested for equipment, but recent events will not deter the council from spending
Councillor Meads added: "You can't keep carrying on thinking the worst case thing all time, because the others miss out." Calverton Parish Council is now waiting for an update from Hags on whether it can proceed with the repairs itself.
Neighbourhood policing sergeant for Gedling north Stu Howe said: “We’ve been made aware of this incident of vandalism at the park and we’re urging anyone who saw what happened, who may have recorded footage or who has any other information which could help us identify those responsible to please get in touch with us."
He added: “Our recently appointed new beat manager for Calverton has made a positive impact and done a lot of work over the last three months to tackle and prevent antisocial behaviour in the area. She attends all the neighbourhood meetings and is doing everything she can to drive down these sorts of incidents which cause distress for the local community.
“She has been a breath of fresh air and, since her appointment, the situation is certainly a lot better than it was. Our ongoing work to tackle antisocial behaviour has also led to significant arrests, with a number of suspects also being charged.
“An eviction order is also in progress in relation to issues caused at a property in St Wilfred’s Square as part of work to tackle antisocial behaviour. We’re also carrying out extra patrols this week, during the half-term period, to further reduce antisocial behaviour, deter any criminality and to deal robustly with anyone causing concerns.”
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