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The serious business of play is about to come under the spotlight as
Wigan Council reveals ambitious plans for the future of fun and games in
the borough.
The council has joined forces with a host of other organisations to form
the Play Partnership.
Led by the council’s Economic Regeneration Office, the partnership is
putting together a strategy outlining a number of projects that will
help improve play opportunities across the borough.
So far, three projects have been developed after the partnership spoke
with children and young people to find out what they wanted to see in
their areas.
The first of these is Play 4 All, which will be managed by three play
workers who will organise activities for children and young people in 32
areas of the borough.
The team will look at how and where children play, recruit and train
volunteer helpers and provide support to groups that already work with
play in the borough, including Wigan Leisure and Culture Trust’s Play
‘In Out team and the Wigan Play Association. It will also look at what’s
on offer for children with special needs.
The second project, called the Under 8s Play Areas, will create new play
spaces at four of the borough’s Sure Start Children’s Centres: Westfield
(Pemberton), Meadowbank (Atherton), Platt Bridge and Westleigh.
Whilst the third initial project will provide a new play area for
children and young people in Wigan’s Mesnes Park.
The three projects are still at the design stage and key to their
success will be attracting cash from the BIG Lottery Fund. The council
has been provisionally awarded nearly £700,000 from the fund and the
play strategy and portfolio of projects will also be submitted in
anticipation of the confirmation of this cash grant in December.
Wigan Council’s Deputy Leader and Cabinet Champion for Regeneration Cllr
John O’Neill says: “Play is vitally important for a child’s development.
Not only can play be used as a learning tool, it can also help children
to develop their social skills and help with interact with other
children from different backgrounds. In turn this promotes greater
understanding and tolerance.”
Cllr O’Neill adds: “Through the Play Strategy and the projects outlined
in the portfolio, we hope to increase and improve children’s access to
play facilities, especially for those children with special needs living
in areas with limited or no play provision.
“Older children and teenagers will also benefit from the overall scheme,
which will provide them with something to do and somewhere to go in the
hope of deterring them from taking part in anti-social behaviour.”
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Notes to Editors
Picture shows play in action at Pennington Flash.
Members of the Play Partnership are: Wigan Council, Wigan Leisure and
Culture Trust, Groundwork Wigan & Chorley, Surestart, Wigan Play
Association, Wigan Learning Disability Partnership and Play England.
Wigan Leisure and Culture Trust role is to maintain the 119 play areas
owned by Wigan Council and to help develop play activities and
opportunities for young people living within the borough.
BIG is the largest distributor of Lottery money. This year it will hand
out more than £630m to community organisations and projects for health,
education and the environment.
The 32 areas of Wigan Borough chosen to benefit from Play 4 All are the
32 most deprived areas as identified in the Index of Multiple
Deprivation 2004.
For more information contact Wigan Council Economic Regeneration Senior
Funding Officer Claire Greenwood on 01942 828958, e-mail
C.Greenwood@wiganmbc.gov.uk
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Play In Action At Pennington Flash
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