Play area officially opens as “Top 15” Stubbylee Park impresses

A Rossendale play area has officially opened after undergoing an £80k transformation.

The equipment in Stubbylee Park has been upgraded to include a jungle climber, five-way swing, scooter roundabout, music cottage, wizard’s hideaway and a cradle seat swing.

Bacup Pride and Newground  worked with Rossendale Council to secure the funding from Viridor Credits Environmental Company and Lancashire Environmental Fund.

Bacup Pride and the Friends of Stubbylee Park hosted an official opening at the play area on Thursday, August 29th at 2pm.

The Mayor of Rossendale, Cllr Barbara Ashworth, lead the ceremony.

And in more great news for Stubbylee Park, it has been placed in the top 15 of the Fields In Trust UK’s Best Park awards this year.

Over 36,000 votes were cast and Stubbylee was named 11th out of the 55 nominated parks in the North West.

The park has been revitalised over the last few years thanks to strong local partnership work.

Rossendale Council has worked with the Park’s Friends Group, Bacup Pride, Newground and Stubbylee Community Greenhouses to come up with a masterplan for the popular local park.

Those ambitious plans have been successfully delivered in various stages over the past few years.

Councillor Walmsley, Portfolio Holder for Resources, said:

The playground looks fantastic – the park has been full of children and families and I’m delighted that, alongside all the other developments here, word is spreading on how great Stubbylee now is. This is truly a team effort. I hope we can help create some fantastic memories here for local children.

Councillor Jackie Oakes, Deputy Leader of the Council and Portfolio Holder for Regeneration and Economic Development, said:

The play area officially opening alongside the recognition from Fields In Trust tops off a great week. We were up against much bigger parks and it just goes to show how much has been achieved there. The community with Council support have really got the park up to scratch. I’d like to thank everyone who voted for us.

Both Councillors appeared in a recent video talking through some of the recent achievements at Stubbylee Park: