New equipment in Bishopsteignton playgrounds were officially opened today.

Parish council chair Henry Merritt untied the red ribbon on the new climbing frame at the Lawns playground at a ceremony that included face painting and ice creams.

Village children have been heavily involved in the development of the Lawns and the Cockhaven play areas. While developing their plans, councillors visited Bishopsteignton primary school to canvas children about what they would like to see in their parks. Requests ranged from ‘a see-saw’ to ‘a swimming pool’ and ‘a zip wire from the top to the bottom of the village’.

Henry and parish council vice-chair Robert Gateshill also visited other local playgrounds, including Decoy in Newton Abbot, to decide on the best equipment for the village’s playgrounds.

While council finances and external funding couldn’t quite stretch to the zip wire, the village now boasts its first ever see-saw in the Cockhaven play park.

See Saw at the Cockhaven play area in Bishopsteignton
Bishopsteignton has its first see-saw (Jo Bowery / MDA)

Henry thanked John Lockwood, a trustee from the Valencia Community Fund, and his wife Laura Lockwood for attending the event and for funding the equipment.

‘Without support from external organisations we would never be able to undertake the task of developing the play park,’ he said. The new climbing frame and safety matting cost £28,000. However, the Parish Council secured £27,500 funding from the Valencia Landfill Community Fund.

Adventure course with climbing frame and stepping stone logs at the Lawns play area in Bishopsteignton
The new adventure course at the Lawns playground in Bishopsteignton (Jo Bowery / MDA)

The see-saw and another adventure trail in the Cockhaven play area at a cost of £17,500, of which £16,000 was covered by a donation from the Valencia Landfill Community Fund.