Work to start on new children's play area at Muiravonside Country Park

Last year members of the public were invited to vote for their favourite design proposal for the new play park, and now the winning design has been revealed.

The winning design was by Kompany and will include equipment for children of all ages and abilities.

This weekend will be the last time visitors to Muiravonside can visit the current playpark as work is set to start on the new area on Monday, February 12.

In a post on social media, the team at Muiravonside Country Park said that almost 1000 votes had been cast to choose the winning design. It said: “We hope you'll agree that this new play park will be a HUGE upgrade to our current aging play area, with lots more equipment, suitable for a range of ages, and lots of different ways to play and engage!

“Work is set to begin on the project this coming Monday, which means this weekend will be your last chance to visit our current play area. We'll keep you updated as the project progresses, and we hope lots of you will be able to join us for our Grand Opening event later in the year!”

Now work is due to begin on building the new play area, it’s the final stage of the project.

Falkirk Council intends to refresh the play area with the help of the Scottish Government’s Play Renewal Fund. The UK Shared Prosperity Fund (UKSPF) is also being used to create an area suitable for neurodiverse children, with £60,000 from this fund to be used to create a new sensory area in the play park.

The new design was created following a community consultation run by Falkirk Council, which launched at the end of 2022.

The answers told the council that the top five things people wanted in the play area were swings, a zip line, a climbing frame, a slide and natural play equipment such as boulders and logs.

Survey replies also suggested that nearly 87 per cent of people wanted the park to cater for toddlers; 96 per cent for children aged five to 12 and nearly 27 per cent for teenagers, aged 13 to 17.

Falkirk Council said that the chosen design contains equipment that will mainly suit ages 0-12, although some of it will be suitable for teens.

The new play park will be laid out in zones, including sensory, toddler, junior, dynamic and agility zones.