Agenda item

This report provides an overview of the current condition of Hammersmith and Fulham’s playgrounds and outlines the development of the 2025-2028 Play Transformation programme which will see a £8.3m investment across the borough.

Jessica Bastock, interim Head of Parks and Cemeteries, introduced the item which

provided an overview of the current condition of Hammersmith and Fulham’s playgrounds and outlined the development of the 2025-2028 Play Transformation programme which would see a £8.3m investment across the borough. She was supported by Hugo Ross-Tatam, Parks Projects Officer

The presentation covered the following points:

• An overview of the Playground Transformation Programme, including the timescale, budget and aims of the project.
• Details on the Programme Development work, including the independent review of the borough’s parks playgrounds and using inspection reports to highlight where improvements could be made.
• Information on the existing programme for 2026-26 and the specific improvements being made to several parks.
• Details on the Housing Services Programme 2025-26, its 62 play sites and the actions being taken to improve play provision on the estates.
• An overview of the Delivery Programme, including the duration of the works, consultation on playgrounds and the procurement of planned works.
• Details on the consultation and engagement work undertaken.
• The role and aims of The Play Forum as part of the Play Transformation

Programme.

Councillor Florian Chevoppe-Verdier, Cabinet Member for Public Realm thanked officers for their work on the project. He noted the Council was fortunate to have nearly £10 million of investment to put into the borough’s parks and open spaces. He explained he had asked officers to focus on three key areas. These were the improvements made to play spaces within housing estates, the intergenerationality and accessibility of the design/s and finally to look at the two-phase consultation effort to maximise resident feedback.

In relation to the £8.3 million of investment, Councillor Amanda Lloyd-Harris asked how much of this was part of the Section 106 money from Fulham Football Club. In response, Mark Raisbeck confirmed the investment was not connected with the money from Fulham Football Club and the funding was completely separate.

With regards to the new space for girls, Councillor Amanda Lloyd-Harris asked what this was. In response, Hugo Ross-Tatam, Parks Projects Officer confirmed this was a space for teenage girls (using the findings in parks, including from the Make Space for Girls national study) for them to hang out in parks. There was a feeling that despite the provision for all genders with multi-use games areas, the needs of teenage girls had been overlooked. Hugo confirmed that the first space for girls would be created in Bishops Park.

Councillor Amanda Lloyd-Harris referred previous initiatives for teenagers, including the creation of a skate park which had been very successful and brought in teenagers from across London which was used by some girls. However, she was still unclear what girls wanted, as, having spoken to a number of them, there had been mixed feedback. So, she asked what the space for girls would look like.

And in relation to the ’beach area’ at Bishops Park, there were ongoing concerns as there was no security in the park. She explained it was welcome to have facilities in parks for all ages, but when these were broken or tampered with due to anti-social behaviour it became an issue. Councillor Amanda Lloyd-Harris asked what was being done to repair the water feature at the beach in Bishops Park.

In response, Jessica Bastock, interim Head of Parks and Cemeteries explained that at the moment, as part of the Playground Transformation Programme, the only area officers had identified as an exemplar play area(s), was Ravenscourt Park. However, officers could investigate the beach area at Bishops Park to identify what work was required.

Councillor Amanda Lloyd-Harris referred to the report and explained facilities for the under 8’s and over 8’s age groups had already been identified. In response, Jessica Bastock confirmed that the paddling pool area at Ravenscourt Park was mentioned. In Bishops Park, Hugo Ross-Tatam confirmed that the two current projects were the under 8’s and over 8’s and in terms of the Space for Girls, this would be an area for exercise and yoga which also included hammocks and additional seating space.

In response, Councillor Amanda Lloyd-Harris confirmed that the additional benches by the skateboarding area were removed after a period of time as they were not used and they were damaged, as were the table tennis tables. Councillor Amanda Lloyd-Harris asked if different contractors would be used for different requirements and whether robust gym equipment would be installed. In response, Jessica Bastock explained that a long-term approach was being taken so that high quality equipment would be installed which would also be well maintained. Hugo Ross-Tatam confirmed the Council would either be inviting quotes or going to open tender to complete the works.

In relation to the £8.3 million funding over 3 years for the programme, Councillor Ashok Patel asked for more information on this. He noted that paragraph 17 of the report highlighted that £7.25 million of the funding was still to be allocated, so asked what had happened to the £5.4 million. Secondly, he noted there were 33 playgrounds across the 55 parks and open spaces and would like further information on this and what the criteria was for specific parks to receive funding. And finally, with regards to the consultation and engagement, apart from consulting the Play Forum and the Parks Forum, he highlighted the importance engaging with local schools to ensure they got maximum usage from the parks.

In response, Jessica Bastock confirmed that of the £8.3 million, £5.4 million was available to spend. The other element of this was future funding, which would come from future development in the borough over the next three years. In terms of the different parks, Jessica Bastock confirmed that some parks were more sport focused. It was not possible for all parks to offer uniform facilities, so a tailored approach would be necessary. With regards to consultation with schools, she confirmed that schools close to parks would be a part of the consultation process and the intention was to use the school’s weekly newsletters to parents and guardians and to insert internet links about the consultation and the park into these.

Councillor Ashok Patel noted that South Park was constantly being used by St Thomas’s School which was a private school, but hardly ever by the Hurlingham Academy which was a state school across the road. He asked if there was a reason for this? In response, Jessica Bastock explained she was unsure why this was the case. However, officers would investigate this and report back to the Committee.

Action: That officers investigate the use of South Park by St Thomas’s School and report back to the Committee.

Councillor Amanda Lloyd-Harris commented that of three parks in her ward, South Park was the least impressive, the fabric was in a state of disrepair, however, it was well used. Hurlingham Park was more than just an astroturf surface or a running track. The issue at Hurlingham, was Fulham Boys School were using it consistently which meant the grass could never recover.

Richard Shwe, Director of Housing provided apologies for absence for Cllr Frances Umeh, Cabinet Member for Housing and Homelessness who was attending a Tenants and Residents Association meeting. He commented that work in partnership which had not been present for a long time with Play and Housing colleagues were working with Parks to develop a new play programme for parks but also for the Council’s estates. He explained Housing would be working collaboratively with registered social landlords (which had not previously looked at play spaces) to improve facilities and promote more inclusive play facilities across the borough. It was noted that on the Clement Atlee Estate, the main play area was run by Notting Hill Genesis but all the tenants thought it was Council controlled.

The Chair, Councillor Rory Vaughan commented that the Committee welcomed the investment and was glad officers had undertaken the conditions report on the different playgrounds and identified that these were at different stages of their life cycles. Councillor Rory Vaughan asked how the improvements to play spaces would be prioritised for an upgrade. Presumably, those spaces in the poorest conditions first, unless there was a different approach. He mentioned the play space at Godolphin Gardens where the equipment seemed out of date as one which officers might wish to investigate.

In terms of the consultation, Councillor Rory Vaughan asked how residents associations and other interested parties could become involved. He noted that in Cathnor Park, the residents association were conducting their own consultation to understand what people wanted in the park and how the playground could be redeveloped. In response, Jessica Bastock confirmed that the Council would concentrate on those playgrounds in the poorest condition first. With regards to the consultation process, and in particular Cathnor Park there was the Friends of group, as a well as an active residents association. And where there might be investment for a larger project, officers might attend the residents’ meetings as part of the consultation.

The Chair commented it would be informative to see the timescales for the different parks when these became available. In terms of encouraging play amongst children, he asked if there was funding for this, such as financing Play Workers and how people volunteered for the Play Forum. In response, Jessica Bastock confirmed Play Workers were not under consideration at this point of the programme, as this was still a concept being bult around the Play Forum. The Committee were encouraged to send details of those residents who had expressed an interest in the Play Forum to officers. She confirmed there would also be an opportunity for expressions of interest to be submitted.

Councillor Florian Chevoppe-Verdier, Cabinet Member for Public Realm, highlighted that this year the Council had been awarded a further three green flags which meant there were now 25 across the borough. In terms of the £10 million total, this was the combined Play and Parks budget. He confirmed that existing programmes would not be drawn from the £10 million as this was separate. He highlighted that more Section 106 money than ever before was being negotiated and so there were no concerns about where the improvements funding would come from. In relation to Section 106 money being ring fenced for specific projects like improvements to Bishops Park through the lease agreement with Fulham Football Club, this was the case. However, Community Infrastructure Levey money was more fluid and could be used to mitigate that.

In terms of future Projects, Councillor Florian Chevoppe-Verdier commented he would not pre-empt the consultation outcomes to ensure the Council provided the facilities that residents had specifically requested (where feasible). He looked forward to taking the largest ever investment into the Borough parks and open spaces forward. Play was a key part to staying well, learning social codes and collaborating with others.

Concluding the item, the Chair noted that the number of questions asked showed what important topics Play, Parks and Open Spaces were. The Committee welcomed the large engagement exercise to ascertain what residents wanted in their parks, and that a wide range of facilities would be modernised. He welcomed that officers were looking at specific users of parks, including teenage girls and the provision which was being made for them. And in addition, that playgrounds would use different contractors, be sustainable and also the engagement with schools.

The Committee looked forward to learning what the timescales would be for these improvements and what the upgrades would be, as well as the roles of Play Workers to get the best out of the new facilities. Finally, he noted that upgrading facilities on housing estates would be critical and be beneficial to these residents and the Committee endorsed officers desire to ensure other social landlords made a positive contribution to the transformation programme. The Committee looked forward to a further update in due course.

RESOLVED

1. That the Committee review the report and provide comments.