Children left with nowhere to play

Playground on Whitehall Lane, Moorside demolished by Oldham Council.

FED-UP children have been left with nowhere to play after a popular park was vandalised beyond repair.

Swings, a slide and climbing frame have now been torn down in Whitehall Lane, Moorside, after a health and safety inspection deemed the area too dangerous for youngsters to play in.

Residents are deeply upset as the park has always been hugely popular with families in the surrounding streets and beyond.

Aquib Afzal, who owns a convenience store and takeaway next to the play area, said: “The bulldozers just turned up and started to destroy the playground.

“It is really sad to see the swings and the slide being knocked down.

“There are a lot of families living round here and the playground is a really well-used community facility, but now the children have nowhere to play. A notice went up a few days ago. There was a number for people to call for information but the council didn’t really give us much of a chance to protest.

“The notice mentioned financial constraints but no-one knows what is going to be done to replace the facilities.

“I know there have been complaints about older children hanging around the park at night but the solution is not to ruin everything for the younger children.

“What about installing CCTV or increasing police patrols at night? I used to bring my children to play on the park while I was at work and it was an excellent area where parents felt their children were safe.”

A council spokesman said: “The park was vandalised beyond repair. We carried out a health and safety assessment and had to tear it down as there are not enough funds available to fix the equipment.

“Lots of people in the area had complained about the park recently and now the space will be made safe.

“There are no plans yet to replace the equipment.”