CALLS have been made to boost funding for the district’s play areas, as it revealed the current budget includes just £128 to maintain each facility a year.

And that amount doesn’t even cover the estimated £175 cost of replacing a single swing.

The figures were revealed at a meeting of the Bradford East Area Committee last week, when members were being given an annual update on the district’s parks and green spaces.

They were told that there are 308 facilities with play equipment across the district - and there was an annual budget of £39,500 for Bradford Council to maintain these facilities.

Members of the committee said maintaining its play areas was vital if they wanted families to keep active and use Bradford’s parks.

Host of Bradford parks are among some of the best in the country

The annual report said the Council has a two person strong team of “playground maintenance operatives” who regularly carry out inspections of the District’s play areas.

As well as general maintenance, they carry out emergency repairs after incidents of vandalism and arson.

Members were told that the team would try to repair play equipment when they could, but that the budget was limited.

Councillor Jeanette Sunderland (Lib Dem, Idle and Thackley) said the committee needed to raise the issue of play area funding with Council leaders. She pointed out that a single act of vandalism on a swing could eat up all the annual maintenance funding for a play area for that year, adding: “We can’t encourage young families to get out and use parks more if we don’t have these facilities.

“They’re not going to say ‘lets go to the park to look at a broken swing.’”

The Committee agreed to “raise concerns about the limited budget for the maintenance of a large number of children’s play areas and the impact of this on offer to young children and families across the district.”

In the past year in Bradford East there has been reports of damage to play areas i Bowling Park, Trident Parkside Park, Attock Park, The Delph, Bradford Moor Park and Idle Recreation Ground.

Members were told that Bradford Council’s parks and green space portfolio measures 7.5 million square metres; the equivalent of 1,043 Wembley Stadium pitches.

There are over 188 parks, playing fields and recreation grounds in Bradford, hosting around 200 events each year.

The annual report also gave some updates on new facilities planned for Bradford East.

Work to install play and fitness equipment at Seymour Park off Leeds Road will begin this month, and obstacle course equipment and play provisions will be installed in Bowling Park before winter.

And a traditional play area in Peel Park will be replaced with a “natural” play area if funding is approved.

Some members raised concerns that there seemed to be little mention of Bradford Moor Park, but members were told that a report into the park will come before the committee by the end of the year.

The Committee was told that in Bradford East parks there are 175 litter bins, although bins are no longer provided in some areas due to arson and vandalism.