Council can't afford £500 to fix child's swing

North East Lincolnshire Council want to wait until the next financial year 2025/26 to repair the swing

A council has said it cannot afford to pay an estimated £500 to fix a child's swing.

The basket swing at Wingate play park on The Willows estate in Grimsby was removed several weeks ago after dogs damaged the equipment.

North East Lincolnshire Council (NELC) said due to "budget constraints" and "no imminent safety risk" it plans to schedule the repair for the next financial year, which starts in four months time.

Councillor for the Freshney Ward, Lyndsey Downes, said taxpayers would be "horrified" to think the council "can't even fall back on £500".

Ms Downes said she was first contacted by residents of The Willows estate about three weeks ago, requesting when the swing would be fixed.

In correspondence seen by the Local Democracy Reporting Service, she said she was told by Councillor Henry Hudson, portfolio holder for environment and net zero, that the estimated repair cost was £500 and the council did not have the money this financial year.

She said: "It’s a crying shame they can’t replace a swing. The residents of The Willows seem to always feel like they miss out.

"The council are doing all these vanity projects like Freshney Place [shopping centre], but forget areas like this."

She added: "I think taxpayers would be horrified to think that they can’t even fall back on £500 of they’ve put in."

'Budget constraints'

Disabled swings at four of Grimsby's parks, including Weelsby Woods, were also put out of action in July by anti-social behaviour.

They remain locked up with the wait for replacement parts ongoing, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

A North East Lincolnshire Council spokesperson said: "We are aware of the damage to the basket swing on The Willows estate which we believe has been caused by irresponsible dog owners allowing their dogs to ruin the equipment.

"Unfortunately, due to budget constraints and there being no imminent safety risk to site users, we intend to schedule the repair for the next financial year."

Commenting on the disabled swings, NELC said it was "committed to ensuring it is repaired as soon as possible so that all children can enjoy our parks and play areas".

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