A CAMPAIGN to save a play area in Wrexham has stepped up after children were recently spotted walking over broken glass at the site.
Ruabon community councillor, Donna O'Brien, who organised a community clean-up of the local Multi-Use Games Area (MUGA), has now organised a public meeting to discuss the next steps to improve it.
Cllr O’Brien organised the clean-up after seeing a number of children playing on the site last week and walking over the broken glass in flip flops.
A statement on Ruabon Community Council's website states they are "committed" to developing the MUGA, which has been closed for a number of years.
It adds: "The Community Council understands the frustrations of the village at the lack of action, however it is proving extremely difficult to obtain funding at the moment. In April of this year the Community Council commissioned a well known company to provide a set of plans, at the same an application was made for some key funding to redevelop the site.
"The estimation of the cost of the new plans was £85,000, unfortunately the Community Council was unsuccessful in its bid for funding and continues to seek new opportunities but this will take time.
"The Community Council recognises this remains a significant resource for our village, however it its current state it is not fit for purpose, and the damage continues which is why it remains closed. Please can you ensure that your children do not use this area at present it not safe."
Ruabon Community Council own the site and Cllr O’Brien said she was keen to work with others to bring the play space back into use for young people in the village.
To that end, she’s launched a petition to revive the MUGA, and has organised a public meeting to discuss its future.
The public meeting takes place at Ruabon Constitutional Club on September 11 at 7pm.
Cllr O'Brien said: “The MUGA has officially been closed for a number of years but the site is not secure, there are several gaps in the fence and children access it regularly.
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“I appreciate there are management challenges but it's clear that there hasn't been any site maintenance for quite some time.
“I also understand pressures on funding which is why I got volunteers together to help, although that is clearly not a sustainable solution longer term and we likely need to discuss risk assessments and ongoing maintenance at the next meeting.”
She added: “A lot of people have worked on this over many years and it’d be great to get them and new people together to make it happen. Local businesses, youth groups and sports organisations have also shown interest in making this happen.
“Through the petition, I have been overwhelmed with the number of messages I've received from local people, organisations and businesses offering to help. This area means a lot to people and that’s why the public meeting has been arranged to get as much community input as possible.”
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