Plan for Play across BCP

Our plan to transform play provision across the region

Last updated 14 September 2026.

On this page: Happening now \  Consultation summer 2025 updates \ Indicative delivery schedule \ Play spaces mapping document \ About the Plan for Play \ The need \ The vision \ Play space assessments \ Strategy documentation \ Scope of the Strategy \ Pre-strategy consultation 2022-24

Latest project news

Happening now

Progress & final concept design news

Earlier in September we finalised the design for Baiter Skatepark and await planning permission, but in the meantime refurbishment works are currently underway at Noyce Gardens, Kings Park (Ashley Road), Mallard Road and Hatchards Field. Waiting in the wings are refurbishment/replacement projects at six more play spaces – Muscliff Park, Hamworthy Park, Churchill Gardens, Green Road, Alexandra Park and Haskells Recreation Ground. Concept designs are available for all these projects, many of them with start dates too …

View the concept plans

Proposals for a new play space at Landford Way, Bournemouth

In June we consulted with residents to fully understand the level of community support for a new play space at Landford Way. Consultation closed on Sunday 05 July; we are currently evaluating feedback and will publish the outcome in due course.

Our defect repairs programme continues

The team continues to prioritise immediate repairs and improvements across a network of 120 play spaces – from brand new skate play equipment at Moordown Rec, to surfacing repairs at Kingston Road and new timber play equipment at Fisherman’s Walk. This work will continue over the coming months to bring new life to as many play spaces as quickly as possible.

We’ll be on Facebook with regular updates

BCP Parks and Open Spaces

Consultation summer 2025 updates

Before any final decisions were made about which sites to refurbish, replace and repurpose (see Play space assessments below) we wanted to hear your views on our recommendations for each of the play spaces that is important to you. So we arranged a 4 week consultation over the summer, with online surveys and in-person events at play spaces across the area.

The consultation closed on 24 August 2025; we are very grateful to everyone that took part.

  • We had over 600 responses – available to view at the council ‘s Have your Say engagement platform: Project Plan for Play | BCP Council
  • The feedback we collected has directly impacted the project, helping the team to revise and develop our original recommendations to ensure refurbishments deliver on community priorities – read about the changes made in ‘You said, we did’

You said, we did

Through in-person meetings, and the broader consultation, our team were met with passion and an abundance of ideas from the community as to how to make play spaces fit for future generations.

In total we received 604 completed surveys (online and paper based); 241 children voted at in-person events on their favourite play activities; 47 drawings were submitted; and one child made a 3D model (which was fantastic).

With the following outcomes:

  • Recommendations at play spaces in Zones 1, 2, 4 and 10 have remained the same as initially proposed.
  • As a direct result of community feedback and funding support from BCP Homes, Mallard Road has been allocated £120,000 to enable the play space to be refurbished in Phase 1.
  • Anchor Close will be refurbished thanks to support from BCP Homes funding and a transitional skate area is planned for Duck Lane at a later phase to support younger and new riders to develop confidence.
  • One of the Hasler Road play spaces will be refurbished as a result of feedback and funding secured from BCP Homes.
  • And we’ve listened to residents in Kinson who told us they wanted to see Keeble Road and Mandale Road remain open – the Keeble Road play space will have its current equipment repaired until it reaches end of life , whilst Mandale Road will stay open with a view to securing major funding at a later stage for a large-scale replacement.
  • Long Road will receive defect repairs in Phase 1. Pelhams Park will receive £75,000 of refurbishment in Phase 1 with further refurbishment in Phase 2, whilst Bradpole Road will no longer be repurposed and is instead set for refurbishment at a later phase.
  • Defect repairs will now be carried out at Chesildene Avenue, Epiphany School and Knowlton Gardens until they reach end of life; whilst Noyce Gardens will see a full replacement of equipment in its current location after residents told us they didn’t want to see it be relocated.
  • All funding options for Riverlands will be investigated going forwards to ensure a play space is maintained within the vicinity of its current location after more than 200 responses were received as part of the consultation process.
  • Cornish Gardens, Cunningham Crescent, Deacon Road, Riggs Gardens, Springwater Road, Gunville Crescent, Rownhams Road, Stratton Road, Swansbury Drive, Boscombe Edwardian Gardens, and Campbell Road will be repurposed following community feedback. Larger refurbishment work will take place at play spaces within close walking distance to each of these sites and, where possible, repurposing won’t take place until after the refurbishments are complete.
  • BMX equipment at Millfield, skate at Sherborn Crescent, timber ramps at Poole Lane and the skate ramp at Noyce Gardens will also be repurposed but the sites will all receive broader repairs and refurbishment. Poole Lane will receive £125,000 in Phase 1 and Noyce Gardens will receive £200,000.
  • The Rookery and Strouden Park will be repurposed with the addition of playable landscape.

We very much appreciate everybody’s input into this process.

A revised Improvement Plan document has been published as a result of these updates (v2 January 2026)

– download the revised plan (PDF, 500kb).

This is the document that lists the future of individual play spaces and sets out costed recommendations and delivery schedule. The full suite of strategy documentation is available further down this page.

Major improvement projects

Indicative delivery schedule

August 2026 update

Please note that this schedule is subject to change and is updated regularly – download the latest schedule (PDF, 85kb).
Defect repair work will continue alongside delivery of these major improvements.

Mapping document Nov 2025

Revised following last summer’s consultation

BCP Plan for Play mapping document, Nov 2025

Our updated map shows those play spaces that will be retained or repurposed; it includes one proposed new play area and another to be relocated. An accompanying A-Z Index of play spaces is included for cross-reference purposes – download the mapping document, incl. A-Z index (pdf 650kb).

Funding the required level of investment is a challenge, but is made clearer and easier with a defined strategy in place. This is supported by the valuable work of community and stakeholder groups who are of increasing importance in championing, resourcing and sustaining local play needs.

The Council’s own Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) (developer contributions for the delivery of infrastructure to support housing growth) will be an important funding mechanism, alongside external funding available to charities and community groups.

About the Plan for Play

In essence, the BCP Council Plan for Play provides a comprehensive framework to transform play provision across the BCP area, fixing existing issues while building a foundation for future generations. 

Our Plan for Play Strategy sets out a clear approach for the management, design and improvement of play infrastructure across all 171 play spaces in the BCP area. It was developed following extensive consultation in 2023, during which we gathered valuable feedback on our draft vision for play, along with important insights into how people use our play and wheeled facilities. The plan was formally adopted by BCP Cabinet and Full Council on 10 December 2024, with approval for £3.9 million of investment to deliver Phase 1 (2025-2027).

Since the Plan for Play is such a large project we have broken it down into phases, with the most urgent work allocated to Phase 1.

BCP’s existing play spaces

Play areas, BMX tracks, skate parks, spaces to play in nature or on street corners are the fundamental building blocks of all our lives and should be of prime importance in the future place shaping across Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole.  

The 171 existing play sites across the BCP Council area comprise 1,175 individual pieces of play equipment (excluding fences, gates, benches etc). The play stock is largely inherited from the preceding Councils and is in major decline; without investment there is a real risk of wholesale removal of equipment and site closures. This would have an immediate impact, not only on the health and wellbeing of our young people, but also on the wider quality of green spaces, feelings of safety and levels of anti-social behaviour.

Poor quality equipment

The vision:

“To provide high quality, accessible, safe and inclusive play spaces, where everyone of all abilities, across Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole, can learn, have fun and be active through play.

All ages and abilities should feel safe, confident and excited to use our play spaces as part of leading fulfilled lives with brighter futures.”

Play space assessments

Play audits were carried out to assess overall site quality and facilities, and each play space has been allocated to one of five categories – Defect repairs, Refurbishment, Replacement, Repurpose or New site. The categories are explained below:

Play space assessment categories explained

All play spaces have been assessed and allocated to one of the following categories.

  • Defect Repairs* – immediate repairs to pieces of play equipment with problems, such as swing seats, poor surfacing and moving parts.
  • Refurbishment – a mid-range intervention required with some equipment to be replaced; others to be improved e.g. new swing seats or multi-unit.
  • Replacement – where sites are beyond end of life and in need of redesign and full replacement. There could also be opportunities to close multiple sites in a geographic area and provide a single new site nearby.
  • Repurpose – where a play space has a large number of defects, low play value, is underused, poorly located or is in close proximity to other sites in better condition; play equipment would be removed and an alternative use found for the space.
  • New site – where a new location has been identified as an improvement to the existing play offer in an area.

* Defect repairs would typically be funded by revenue funding, but the current council-wide spending controls do not allow or cover the repairs needed.

To discover the category assigned to your favourite play spaces, please check the ‘All sites Improvement List’ included in our Improvement Plan below.

We do not yet have funding for sites that have been identified as requiring refurbishment or replacement in future phases, and they will have to wait until after we complete Phase 1 (i.e. after 2027). Meantime we are focussing on urgent defect repairs to these play spaces, & repurposing others.

Plan for Play strategy documentation

There are three main Plan for Play documents: the Strategy, Improvement Plan and Design Guide. This suite of documents stresses the importance of play for all ages, describes how we propose to address the sheer number and cost of improvements required, and ensures our provision for future generations is prioritised.

Strategy document

Download (pdf, 2MB)

Revised Improvement Plan

Download (pdf, 1MB), v2 January 2026

Design Guide

Download (pdf, 3MB), v2 December 2025

The Strategy document sets out a rationale for delivery in a prioritised manner and process. It identifies the need for defect repairs, refurbishment, replacement, creation of new play spaces and repurposing; while taking into account the diverse needs of our community. 

The Improvement Plan considers, Zone-by-Zone, the future of play areas, the decisions made on individual spaces following the summer 2025 consultation and sets out costed recommendations.

High quality design should ensure all factors are considered in any provision: (a) that it lasts a long time, (b) provides value for money, (c) is well used and loved, (d) provides a range of stimulation, challenge and enjoyment, and (e) that it is created to be accessible and inclusive. The Design Guide provides an overview of the requirements.

Scope of the strategy

The Plan for Play aims to secure the future of play areas and wheeled sports provision in BCP Council. We have had to limit the scope of this strategy to ensure it remains achievable: 

  • It includes BCP Council owned play areas including rebound walls, natural play, play trails, play sculptures and Multi-Use Games Areas (MUGAs) and wheeled provisions including skate parks (timber ramps, ramps and rails, concrete bowls, concrete) BMX tracks (gravel, dirt & concrete,) and Cyclogyms. 
  • The term ‘play’ should be read as encompassing all these facilities and uses, and the Plan for Play references the whole Strategy, Design guide and Improvement plan.
  • Referenced to BCP’s Green spaces, so not indoor or private spaces, such as school playgrounds that are generally inaccessible to the public.
  • The Plan for Play does not include other play opportunities across the conurbation such as splash parks, adult outdoor fitness equipment, private (developer) owned facilities, or facilities managed by organised groups, such as the velodrome; these are all out of scope.

We understand that there will be many questions about the process and the decisions that are being made for play spaces. With this in mind we have put together a list of answers to frequently asked questions (including anticipated questions) which should be of help – find them here

Pre-strategy play consultation 2022-2024

Wide-ranging pre-strategy public consultation was carried out during 2022-2024, through a BCP-wide Play Survey and engagement with the Council’s Youth Forum.

Project details

Updated Budget Phase 1, £4.6 million
Funding Various sources – Community Infrastructure Levy, developer contributions, third-party funding and ring-fenced reserves
Project Leader Rebecca Whelan-Edmonds, Programme Manager, BCP Council
T. 01202 123432
E. greenspaces@bcpcouncil.gov.uk

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