New Pitlessie play park is now open for business

The work was prompted when local pupil Niamh Frape (then P7) came along to a Community Council meeting to highlight the condition of the equipment in the park and to ask for support in re-developing the area to make it safer and more appealing to play in.

John Lamond, chairman, said: “We were all really impressed by Niamh when she came along to speak at our meeting, and she highlighted the importance of bringing the play equipment back up to a reasonable standard so that children in the local area can continue to enjoy the outside space that we have in the park.

"It’s taken us a while to raise the funds we needed and to work together with the council to come up with a plan that was within budget while still giving the kids plenty to play with.”

The land for the park was donated to the community by local farming family, The Martin-Smiths (now known as Smith), to ensure that a communal green space was available for all in perpetuity. The upgrade to the play equipment is planned to be the first stage of a wider re-development of the park area, with the hope that further funding can be raised which will allow for new football/rugby goals, paths, planting and landscaping to be installed.

Mr Lamond finished saying: “The support we have received from residents and local businesses in raising the money that was required has been fantastic. In addition, we also received £30k funding from Fife Council as well as £30k from the Scottish Government and £50k from the Fife Environmental Trust (FET), without which the project simply could not have happened.”

Councillor Jonny Tepp, Convenor of the North East Fife Area Committee said: "It’s fantastic to see the work being completed on the playpark. The community council and locals have worked hard to make this project happen, raising around £4000 towards the work and I’m delighted we’ve been able to support this by giving £30k from the area budget.”