Scottish Government announces 'very welcome' £25m playpark investment

First Minister John Swinney and deputy FM Kate Forbes announced a £25m playpark investment from Woodhead Park in Kirkintilloch on Monday morning.

The money is aimed at refurbishing playparks for children across Scotland and it’s the final instalment of the £60m fund promised by the Scottish Government.

However, the money is not currently ring-fenced to provide inclusive play spaces and research from the charity SCOPE has found that only one in ten playparks are inclusive to children with disabilities.

“Today’s announcement is about a rolling programme of funding to improve equipment and design in playparks,” Marguerite Hunter Blair, CEO of Play Scotland, told STV News.

Mrs Hunter Blair said this is “really important” for the health and well-being of children.

“There’s been a lot underinvestment in child playgrounds in recent years, so this money is very welcome.”

Marguerite Hunter Blair, CEO of Play Scotland. STV News

Mrs Hunter Blair said she’s “delighted” that so much playground equipment is now designed for every child -including those with disabilities – and she emphasised that local authorities need to make sure playparks are accessible for all.

“To be truly inclusive, we need a change in infrastructure,” she said.

“We need to take that very seriously indeed.”

However, she acknowledged that there’s a “huge cost implication” when it comes to inclusivity.

“It’s quite reasonable not to have fully inclusive parks everywhere but every local authority should have a reasonable spread, and that’s what we’re asking for so that parents have choice [within their area].”

Swinney also encouraged local authorities to “take steps” to ensure playparks are able to be inclusive for all children.

“We have to be open and willing to consider any steps to make playparks more inclusive to meet the needs of more children and young people,” he said.

Swinney explained that local authorities take forward the playpark investment money on behalf of the Scottish Government and have the flexibility to use that money and supplement it to meet the needs of their people.

Swinney encouraged councils to consider inclusivity and to take inclusive playpark strategies forward.

“When playgrounds are better spaces for children with complex needs, they’re actually better spaces for everyone,” Mrs Hunter Blair said.