Review of playparks ongoing amid concern over level of investment needed for upgrades
QUESTIONS have been raised over whether Shetland Islands Council (SIC) can afford the investment required to keep all of its play areas at the “standard that everybody would love to see”.
Councillor Davie Sandison sounded the warning when he chaired a meeting of the education and families committee on Monday.
The SIC is expecting to bring a review on the maintenance requirements and sustainability of play areas to councillors at the end of August.
There are 84 play areas and 22 multi-courts located in Shetland, from Unst to Fair Isle.
Sport and leisure manager Neil Watt told the meeting that there had been hopes to bring a report on the review to councillors earlier but it was paused to carry out more consultation in terms of future plans.
A review was mooted as far back as last year.
Watt said the team has been working with A Place in Childhood, which has been collaborating with the SIC on increasing young people’s participation in planning.
The aim from this is to learn more from young people about the types of play spaces they want to see.
Watt added that the plan is to also have a working group on play areas and multi courts to look at “how we manage them into the future”.
A report on the Active Schools programme presented by Watt highlighted the challenge of ageing facilities and reduced maintenance budgets.
It said the review would look at the number and condition of playparks and multicourts in Shetland.
Sandison said some of the play areas have been around for many, many years, and added: “The cost of upkeep and dare I say it renewal of some of these things is significant, and the budgets simply aren’t really there.”
He said multicourts might be the “pinnacle of that”, but there are some small play areas that are significantly ageing and in “need of some decision about whether to keep them or not”.
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Sandison said: “I am concerned that there will be decisions to be made whether or not we can actually afford the investment needed to really upgrade all the facilities to the standard that everybody would love to see.”
The approved SIC budget for 2026/27 includes an unsustainable draw from reserves of more than £20 million, with a list of savings proposals set to be investigated.
Meanwhile the Active Schools report also highlighted the funding received by the SIC from the Scottish Government’s Play Park Renewal Programme, which has enabled accessible equipment to be bought for a number of playparks.
This programme is in its final year and will be completed at the end of March, Watt said.
Committee member Martin Tregonning welcomed the introduction of more accessible equipment, saying the positive impact on families can be “quite huge”.
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