Youths ramp up efforts for skate park and better seating

Members of Alderley Edge Youth Council, which was established last year to enable the younger generation to have an influence on developments in the village, have been working hard to secure further enhancements to the village park.

The four oldest members, on behalf of the ten youth councillors, attended the monthly Parish Council meeting on Monday, 13th March, to update them on their activities and their priorities for additional improvements.

The Youth Council are currently working on three key areas, which are creating a seating area and skating park as well as upgrading the current equipment. They are also in the process of applying for various grants to help them achieve these goals.

Francesca explained "We are keen to create a seating area in the park. The park is well used by office staff for lunches, parents and residents however there is only limited seats at the moment. Our initial thoughts are to create a seating area, which has a clear view of the play equipment whilst being slightly set back for those looking for some quiet to sit.

"We have invited a local garden designer along to our next meeting who will be bale to translate our ideas into drawings."

George told the councillors "Through our consultation with our peers it was very clear that an area to skate was top of the list of priorities."

He added "We spoke to someone recently who asked why we were skating on the front of Wilmslow. We explained that there was nowhere suitable in the village, however the Youth Council were looking into providing somewhere in the future. They were delighted to hear we were doing something proactive about it and were keen to make a donation to the project."

They are yet to decide on the best location for the skate park, and welcome any suggestions or ideas, but one that has been identified is the grass area between the tennis courts and children's play area.

Speaking about the potential location, Councillor Rachael Grantham said "We are trying to keep as much of the green space as we can whilst using the areas that are perhaps not as well used as they can be."

Members of the Youth Council have also met with Cheshire East Council's park inspectors who gave them guidance about what they could and couldn't do to improve Alderley Edge Park.

Joseph said "They recommended that we look at replacing a couple of pieces of equipment that were reaching the end of their life."

He added "The ultimate aim is to make better use of the play equipment areas whilst retaining plenty of green space."

Councillor Craig Browne told the youth councillors "I am working with Cheshire East to try and find some section 106 money, which is a bit like a grant from Cheshire East, to try and help fund some of what you have been discussing. It's not going to fund everything and we're probably going to have to do some fundraising ourselves as well but we'll do everything we can to get as much as we can from Cheshire East."

Councillor Oliver Hunter, the Mayor of Cheshire East Council, was invited to attend the Alderley Edge Youth Parish Council meeting last week so they could learn more about her role but also to tell her about their organisation and the projects they are working on.

Councillor Rachael Grantham said "It was a lovely evening and it was nice to hear a little bit more about her role at Cheshire East and the councillors gained a lot in hearing about her life as a councillor and she enjoyed hearing a little bit about our projects, the park but also our fundraising projects."

Tags:

Alderley Edge Park, Youth Council