Kirkcaldy country park group's milestone to £250,000 target for playpark revamp

The Dunnikier Country Park Development Group has now reached more than £200,000 in funding for the park, having received a further £50,000 in backing from Fife Environmental Trust.

The funding puts the group one step closer to hitting its target of £250,000. Achieving the magic number is expected to trigger the first wave of works at the location where the group is looking to install a new accessible play park.

Stephen MacCrimmon, secretary, said: "We're thrilled at the significant progress of the project, with a conditional grant offer of £50,000 from Fife Environmental Trust, bringing our total funding to an impressive £209,000. We're actively working with Fife Council towards our goal of unveiling a brand new inclusive play park by May 2024, just 18 months from its conception. It feels a little unbelievable really, but it always seems impossible until it’s done!"

The existing play park was removed from the country park in August, having been dubbed “not fit for purpose” by the group. Fife Council is now preparing a tender for the project which is set to be released on Friday, September 15. Further public consultation will take place afterwards.

David Torrance, SNP MSP for Kirkcaldy, chairs the group, and added his delight that the project has made significant progress towards reaching its target.

Mr Torrance said: “I’m pleased to see that the development of Dunnikier Country Park is now well underway and making some good progress with the unsafe play equipment now having been removed by Fife Council. The news that the development group has secured £209,000 in funding is fantastic and it will go a long way to providing a safe, fit for use, and inclusive play park for families in Kirkcaldy to enjoy”.

He added his thanks to those who have worked within the group to get the project to its current stage, and looked forward to next year.

He added: “This wouldn’t have been possible without the hard work and perseverance from the members of the Dunnikier Country Park Development Group and I’m looking forward to its grand opening next year.”

It is hoped that the new play park will be operational in time for next summer. In the meantime, the group has set about putting forward a programme of events for the remainder of the year and beyond, including a Mother's Day craft event, an Easter Egg hunt, a country fayre, a Father's Day build event, a spooky trail, and more.

The group was formed in 2022 by Stephen and Gary Meldrum who had “spent years” talking about how they wanted to return their local park to its glory days. Within eight months the group had raised £150,000 towards redevelopment of the park.

The group has undertaken extensive consultations with local residents as they look to rebuild the park. There is a strong focus on replacing those facilities with something that is open to all, with access a huge consideration for the group.