Published Friday 18 November 2022 at 14:14
Blackburn’s flagship park is set for a £550,000 transformation with playground upgrades and a brand new Go Ape Tree Top Adventure Course.
Blackburn with Darwen Council’s Planning and Highways Committee voted to pass two applications for Witton Park at their meeting last night.
They included plans to spend £350,000 improving the two main playgrounds there and the brand new Go Ape attraction for families.
Speaking after the meeting, the Council’s Deputy Leader and Executive Member for Growth and Development, Councillor Quesir Mahmood said:
What fantastic news this is for the whole borough.
Not only will the popular playgrounds be completely transformed, but we’ll soon be welcoming a brand new Go Ape too.
Witton Park has long been our flagship park and this is an incredible amount of investment which will make a huge difference and will be enjoyed by our residents and visitors too.
These are exciting plans – a real boost for Blackburn with Darwen.
The Committee agreed plans to use £350,000 of Section 106 funding from Barratt Homes and Taylor Wimpey developments off Brokenstone Road to fund the playground upgrades.
They also agreed plans for the new Go Ape Tree Top Adventure Course boasting access towers, tree platforms, timber and wire crossings and zip wires.
It’ll be a brand new scheme for the award-winning company with a focus on family fun.
Councillor Mahmood added:
These plans will mean that Witton Park, with its sprawling green space, is boosted as a fantastic tourist attraction – a perfect place for families to enjoy fun outdoors.
As a Council, we’re working really hard to bring new investment in to the borough to benefit our residents and this is a fantastic example of that.
I’m really looking forward to the work being able to start and seeing both schemes open and filled with people enjoying themselves.
Work to the playgrounds and the Go Ape facility could start as early next year with official opening dates to be announced.
Already, Go Ape has more than 34 unique outdoor activity centres, with the closest one located in Rivington.
A spokesperson for the company said:
We are delighted that we have been welcomed into Witton Park.
It is great to be part of the improvement of a much-loved park and we look forward to welcoming everyone into the trees soon.
Witton Country Park covers 480 acres of countryside with pretty picnic spots, walks, nature trails, a children’s bike track, cycle centre and café.
Each year it plays host to live events, including Restricted Rocks, Restricted Forest and more.
It’s also home to the state-of-the-art Witton Park Arena with associated outdoor facilities, which are home to regional track and field events as well as organised cross country running.