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Council accused of being 'barking mad' over removal of playpark equipment serving the Seaboard villages if Balintore and Hilton in Easter Ross


By Philip Murray

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Maureen Ross and Norma Balfour (centre) of the Seaboard Centre with locals from the Seaboard villages of Hilton, Balintore and Shandwick unhappy about swings being taken away. Picture: James Mackenzie
Maureen Ross and Norma Balfour (centre) of the Seaboard Centre with locals from the Seaboard villages of Hilton, Balintore and Shandwick unhappy about swings being taken away. Picture: James Mackenzie

FURIOUS villagers have accused Highland Council of being "barking mad" after it removed yet more playpark equipment in Easter Ross.

Residents in the Seaboard villages were dealt a shock recently when council workers showed up without any prior warning and removed the playpark equipment opposite the Seaboard Centre in Balintore.

The removal comes hot on the heels of an identical controversy in Tain just last month and, as with that row, the reason for the removal in Balintore is understood to be a lack of sufficient safety bark beneath the equipment.

Last month's play park controversy at Tain Links was only resolved after local councillors used £4000 of their discretionary ward budget to purchase new bark which meets official safety standards.

It meant the play park equipment could be reinstated, but not before locals and councillors also hit out at Highland Council officers over their insistence that much more expensive specialist bark had to be purchased instead of cheaper locally sourced materials - arguing that they did not meet the necessary standards.

And fuming residents in Balintore have accused Highland Council of learning nothing from that earlier row.

They are livid that no prior warning was given, arguing that they might have been able to club together to source funding to ensure the park could stay open throughout.

"If the equipment was dangerous then there would be every good reason to take the swings away, but they were safe, it’s a case of the ground underneath needing more bark," said Maureen Ross, the director of the Seaboard Centre.

"Quite frankly this is barking mad and the Highland Council seem to have gone to the dogs.

She added: "All three local councillors were shocked. I actually felt sorry for them as they have been left taking the flak from the public once again and yet they had no hand in the decision making nor were they advised. What is wrong with communication in Highland Council?

"We have always had a really good relationship with our local councillors and I know that if we had had prior knowledge they would have worked with us and the wider local community groups and businesses to resolve this and have our swings stay in situ."

She added that she had visited Tain Links since the new bark was laid and said: "Surely the council have lost the plot altogether if they think this is safer than the material they have been using for decades which is a fraction of the price."

Ward councillor Alasdair Rhind also took a dim view of the council's lack of communication over the Balintore move and said "ludicrous" situations like this made him "very embarrassed" to be a councillor.

"Here we've got Highland Council preaching about wellbeing in the community," he said. "Children live to get out to play and that right is taken away in one fell swoop – taken away because there's not enough bark. That's ludicrous. Highland Council has lost the plot."

He added that he could get locally-sourced bark "down there today" for £22 per cubic tonne, but the council insists on using material that is £80 per cubic tonne.

"This is what Highland Council calls best value – something that is costing four times as much."

He added that council officers insist any locally-sourced bark could have sharp edges in it, and this was the reason for the specialist bark, but that "I went down there [to Tain] to visit and its bark has got sticky bits in too".

"Highland Council can waste money on the stupidest of projects that mean nothing to Highland people but these [playparks] are things that mean something to the people of the Highlands and yet the council can't put money to it."

Responding to complaints from residents, a council spokesperson said: “The Council has 339 play parks and over 2500 pieces of play equipment. The provisions of play parks in not a statutory duty; but the inspection and maintenance of equipment once installed, is a mandatory requirement. The budget was reduced significantly in 2018 from £402k to £187k. Play parks are subjected to daily, weekly, fortnightly or monthly inspection based on usage and risk, and an annual inspection carried out by a qualified Playground Inspector.

“We recognise the positive effects playparks and their social benefits have on children’s mental health and well-being. This has been particularly highlighted by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and lockdowns. Where health and safety concerns are identified we aim to have these resolved as quickly as possible so children can continue to enjoy the facilities.

"Ward managers receive a weekly update on sites to be inspected the following week, they send this on to Members so they know what is happening in their Wards the following week. We are working closely with Members to review the play park provision in their areas and our Officers are completing the second round of attending ward business meeting. We are required to make safe or remove unsafe pieces of play equipment. This includes if the surface under the equipment is not adequate. We notify Members of the action we have taken but are not required to seek their approval to make safe any issues identified as a health and safety risk. Where an issue is identified we aim to resolve it as quickly as possible. Opening of the play park could be completed within 48 hours of the play chip being placed on site, and a further safety inspection being carried out to sign the site off as safe.

“The Highland Council recently made decisions that will help direct more money towards playparks. These funding option can all be considered:

  • the Council agreed in January this year that local area committees could allocate any unspent COVID ward funding towards playparks and invested a further £240k to make sure each Ward had the same amount of Covid ward funding available.
  • a further £100K is earmarked for play areas and is still to be allocated and we can consider this once all the local meetings have taken place.
  • other local sources of funding were reported to the Council in January 2021 and include e.g. coastal communities funding, Common Good funds, any appropriate national funding streams as well as local donations.
  • the Council also agreed in March 2021 to allocate a further £110K for each of its 21 wards for discretionary spending (£2.31m) which could also be invested in playparks.

“It is important that safe and suitable bark woodchip is used. Playpark or woodchip, as we are using now, has to conform to regulations demanding a degree of resistance, is treated for potential diseases and also has all sharp projections removed to avoid skelfs etc and injury to children. Bark off chipped trees could have mould, things inherent from the tree or unregulated sizes. Animals waste can also be an issue in untreated bark particularly dogs. The standard grain size is 20 – 80mm and we spread to a depth of 300mm.”


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