A NEW £60,000 playground has been formally opened in Oldbury on Severn.

The opening marked the culmination of years of fundraising by Oldbury on Severn Parish Council’s playing fields committee (PFC), to replace the existing equipment.

Despite the rain many of the village's residents turned up to see the High Sheriff of Gloucestershire Tom Frost officially open the new play facility on Friday, October 24.

The need for improvements was further highlighted by the results from the 2010 parish plan questionnaire, which confirmed the need for better facilities for children up to 11 years of age.

The Parish Plan Steering Group provided help in the fundraising process and approached Biffa Award, run by Biffa Group, to see if help could be provided by their scheme which funds awards and grants from landfill tax credits.

The work the PFC had already carried out gave a clear picture that around £60,000 was needed to complete the project.

After a main grant scheme application was submitted to Biffa Award, in May this year the PFC was formally awarded a grant of £50,000.

A requirement of the award scheme is that a third party contributor pays 10 per cent of the project costs and Horizon Nuclear Power provided the £5,000 needed.

Along with money already saved by the PFC, the council was able to place their order for the new equipment in July.

The facilities now include a climbing complex complete with slide, a slide, a roundabout, swings, springers and a spinner.

Oldbury Playing Fields was originally a clay pit for brick manufacture but the parish council purchased it after it became redundant in the 1970s.

Barry Turner, secretary to the parish plan and PFC member, said: “We are proud of the new playground and hope to achieve further improvements in the future for the benefit of our community and visitors to the parish.”

Gillian French, Biffa Award programme manager, added: “This project is an excellent example of how the Landfill Communities Fund can help revitalise facilities for the benefit of local community.

"For over 16 years recreation spaces across the UK have benefited from the scheme and the organisations that award grants through the fund look forward to supporting more in the future.”