Major improvements to outdoor areas in Keighley are being delivered by Bradford Council through a fund designed to promote the regeneration of the town.
Work to create outdoor gyms in Devonshire and Victoria parks is due to be completed by the end of this month in time for the expected easing of lockdown later in spring.
Other work includes ongoing improvements to play areas at The Beeches, and at Thwaites Brow, starting next week.
Work to provide a trim trail and improved signs at Lund Park is due to start on site by the end of this month and should be complete by the end of April.
Also due to be finished next month are improvements to the multi-use games area (MUGA) in Victoria Park and work to upgrade the Devonshire Park ball court area to a full MUGA.
The work is being funded by a £750,000 grant from the Towns Fund Scheme set up to drive long-term economic growth.
This is in addition to a much more substantial plans for a £25 million Towns Fund into Keighley and Shipley.
The initial funding was offered before the setting up of an independent Towns Fund Board which oversaw the development of Town Investment Plans which were recently submitted to Government, and is being used by the Council to fund a range of projects locally that will ensure as many people as possible are able to share in and experience the benefits of the investment.
Cllr Alex Ross-Shaw, Executive Member for Regeneration, Planning and Transport, said: “We selected a number of smaller projects for the final submission to help to spread the benefits of this funding as widely as we could.
“We were keen to ensure as many people as possible were able to share in and experience the tangible rewards of this investment.”
Cllr Sarah Ferriby, Executive Member for Healthy People and Places, said: “We know how important open spaces and play areas are for people’s physical and mental welfare. Any investment in those kind of areas provides incalculable benefits in the future.
“Hopefully we will start to come out of lockdown soon making our open spaces more vital than ever before, and every penny spent on them is money well spent.”
In 2019, Keighley and Shipley were selected by Government as two of 101 places across England eligible for up to £25m investment through the Towns Fund.
The Towns Fund constitutes a transformational programme of activity and investment in town and high street regeneration, promoting the distinctive offer of each place.
In July last year, Bradford Council received a letter from the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government offering Keighley and Shipley an additional grant of up to £750,000 to fund capital projects that can be completed within this financial year.
This money, administered by the local authority, was intended to deliver ‘accelerated projects’ and is independent of the potential £25m fund.
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