A petition was received from local residents for a new play area on an area of land where a previous play area had been removed as it was no longer functional. The Community Partnership Officer (CPO) for the Motherwell area carried out discussions with the local residents about how this project could be developed.

The CPO engaged and consulted with local pupils from Cathedral Primary School and Muir Street Primary School to gauge what type of equipment they would wish to play on, providing examples of play equipment and possible themes. The CPO also visited Lanarkshire Deaf Club to engage with young people and determine what they would like to see in the play area which is located across from their club.

Local residents had provided details of strong support for the project and the proposal was then submitted and endorsed by Motherwell Community Board.

The installation of the £140,000 play area was successfully completed in June 2024. The CPO ran a design competition with pupils from local schools, Cathedral Primary School and Muir Street Primary School, to “design a sign” for the new play area, with the winning design being turned into the official play area sign.

Due to the location of the play area and Motherwell’s proud industrial heritage, the park’s unique design incorporates imagery inspired by the steel industry into both the play equipment and ground surfaces, blending heritage with fun and activity. Along with this, the park has sign language panels and fencing surrounding the park to support safety of children. Please see below the before and after images.