Sutton Park Town Gate

Sutton Park Town Gate Feasibility Report on the creation of a Destination Play Area for Sutton Park Produced on behalf of Sutton Coldfield Town Council by The Landscape Practice Group Birmingham City Council January 2019 CONTENTS Summary…………………………………………………..1 Introduction………………………………………………2 What Makes a Destination Play Space?……………3 Regional Examples of Destination Play Areas……14 The Existing Site ...………………………………………25 Constraints, Pressures and Opportunities………….33 Master Plan for a Destination Play Area .................51 APPENDIX………………………………………………..61 Summary What is a Destination Play Space? It is important to remember that play spaces are created for the benefit of our children. The core drivers behind the design and provision of such spaces Is to improve children’s health and well-being, to further their physical and emotional development whilst helping them to become well balanced young adults. A Destination Play Space is suited to children of all abilities regardless of age, physical handicap or mental ability and is the ultimate expression of the objective to offer a richer more diverse play environment than can be provided by small local play areas. For this objective to be realised at Town Gate, there is a clear need to expand the available size of the play space. It is currently less than half the size of the smallest existing regional destination play space in Tamworth and is likewise dwarfed by both facilities provided in Walsall Arboretum and in Telford Town Park, which are at least seven times as large. There are also other issues to overcome at Town Gate, such as the lack of adequate levels of visitor parking near to the play space and the need to find workable solutions to the current traffic management problems before these issues are exacerbated by increased visitor numbers. This study has examined the feasibility of creating a Destination Play Area at Town gate and goes as far as suggesting a possible master plan for the site based on its findings. But it is simply a starting point. Essential public consultation needs to be undertaken with local residents, park users and local schools and businesses. This will identify the direction in which stakeholders would like to see the project developed. Further studies are required to look at the long term viability of the café and the park shelter and there is a need to monitor visitor information for a minimum 12 month period to fully understand how the park at Town Gate is currently used. Town Gate offers real opportunities to develop the site into the premier Destination Play Space for the region. The creation of such an attraction would greatly increase visitor numbers to the park and by association to Sutton’s nearby commercial shopping centre redevelopment. This would thereby help local businesses and new enterprises prosper whilst benefiting the children and residents of Sutton Coldfield for generations to come. Put simply, in answer to the question; “What is a Destination Play Space?” It is a catalyst for positive growth and development, an inspirational landmark for the region and a lasting childhood memory. ………………………………………. Sutton Park, Town Gate Destination Play Area 1 Introduction A destination, by definition, is ‘a place worth of travel or an extended visit’, in application to a play area, it denotes a place that people will make a special trip to visit. The creation of a single main destination play area is a fairly common occurrence in other parts of the country, where the local authority may not follow Fields in Trust guidelines on the provision of local and neighbourhood play areas. In effect this centralisation enables those authorities to invest more resources into creating and managing a single larger play facility than managing and maintain multiple smaller facilities. Figure 1: The pirate ship at Diana Memorial Playground The negative side of this strategy is that residents will have to travel much further to enable them to access a play space and this can create difficulties and inequalities for some user groups. Figure 2: Carved Sculpture feature Figure 3 & 4: Water play features at Diana Memorial Play Area Sutton Park, Town Gate Destination Play Area 2 What Makes a Destination Play Space? There are a number of key features that qualify a play area as a destination site. These features not only relate to the physical layout of the play space, how well it functions and is maintained, but also to its location, and its associated facilities as well. These features and requirements are summarised below and are explored in more detail in this section of the report. Essential Elements for a Successful Destination Play Space: Size of the Play Space Diversity and Interest of the Provision Café & Public Amenities Good Transport Links Adequate Parking Facilities Proximity to other Local Attractions Robust Maintenance Regime Sutton Park, Town Gate Destination Play Area 3 Size Visitors might combine a visit to a destination play area with a trip to other nearby local attractions or a shopping centre. Whereas a typical length of stay at a local play area may be an hour or so, visitors to destination play areas attract large numbers of visitors who stay for much longer periods. This pattern of visitor behaviour generates greater pressure on the facility throughout the day as visitor numbers build. It is therefore essential to provide sufficient space within the play area to safely accommodate the maximum numbers of expected users and their families. Figure 4: Renovated Splash zone at the award winning Gheluvelt Park in Worcester. A suitably sized facility will also be able to accommodate different zoned areas which relate to varying play activities, age groups or physical aptitudes. This requires space to avoid conflict between users and to maintain safe operating zones for the play equipment. Figure 5: Visitor numbers grow steadily during the day The pressures that these high visitor numbers bring, can often be surprising for operators of smaller play areas, A large facility will be able to disperse these pressures over a greater area and therefore comfortably cope with the different peak time demands. Figure 6: Popular sites attract high visitor numbers. Images courtesy of Worcester City Council. Although it is difficult to predict actual visitor numbers before a new facility is created, a key indicator will be found by recording the current visitor numbers for an existing facility. This is an essential starting point prior to the development process. Sutton Park, Town Gate Destination Play Area 4 In order to function well as a destination play space a site must: • Be able to safely accommodate the predicted numbers of visitors whilst conforming to event management guidelines, without the necessity for applying regular external controls. A maximum occupational density for users of no more than two people per m2 is recommended for events. For play spaces which have potentially hazardous movement zones around play equipment, this would be reduced to between 0.5-1.0 people per m2. Funders and managers of a facility must recognise that occasional overcrowding may still occur at peak times and should account for this eventuality. If controls become necessary, they would typically necessitate the employment of additional parks staff to monitor and control entry to the play space. This could mean the implementation of entry queuing system or the operation of a one-in one-out visitor entry policy. The need for this approach brings with it substantial additional operational costs and if they are prevented from entering, potential dissatisfaction of visitors, who may have travelled some distance to visit the play area. For large play sites with sufficient operational space, this issue can be avoided as it will be to some degree self- regulating by the users themselves. There are broadly up to sixteen different categories of play activity that children utilise during the different stages in their development from an infant to junior level. A well designed play space will provide as much space as possible to fulfil as many of these different types of play activities that are needed for their physical and emotional development. • Within the initial design development it is essential to account for the space needed to allow for a variety of play activities, beyond the usual standard play equipment provision. A design should include areas for free play, for family activities, as well as separate quiet play spaces. Categories of play commonly associated with designed play spaces may include; Motor or Physical play Social or Cooperative play Observatory or Onlooker Play Exploratory play Solitary play We have looked at comparative sizes of local regional play areas for the purposes of this study in the next chapter. Sutton Park, Town Gate Destination Play Area 5 Diversity and Interest ‘Diversity’ in this instance relates specifically to the provision of play equipment suited to different age groups and abilities, whilst ‘Interest’ is related to the range of activities and play opportunities those features provide. All children will find the activity or equipment, which they feel suits their current level of ability, but they will also seek to challenge their boundaries if they are in an environment in which they feel safe. This is a key developmental tool that they need as they grow and a key function that a well-designed play space should provide. Most equipment for play areas will be designed to catering for either early years (2-5yrs) or junior (6-14yrs). Although there is some crossover of the age groups, these distinctions relate largely to the physical and social developmental stages, which occur during childhood. Figure 7: Natural features hold as much interest and challenge for children as traditional equipment Play manufacturers also provide a wide range of inclusive play equipment which can be seamlessly integrated into a play space, enabling disabled users to join in with play activities without segregation or discrimination.

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