Renovations to seafront play area set to go ahead

The play areas in Folkestone's Lower Leas coastal park were installed in 2000

A £750,000 revamp of one of Kent's largest free adventure play areas is set to move forward.

Folkestone & Hythe District Council's (FHDC) cabinet will meet on Wednesday to approve a further £191,000 for the children's play areas in Folkestone's Lower Leas coastal park which are "at the end of their life".

The funding comes on top of the £559,000 already allocated to the project.

Councillor Connor McConville, cabinet member for assets at FHDC, said he was "delighted we can invest this money into a much-needed makeover".

The play areas were "of exceptional quality when installed" in 2000 and attract hundreds of thousands every year, council papers say.

"Due to the coastal environment, extensive tree cover and the sand safety surfacing wearing the timbers, the equipment, now 24 years old, is beyond economical maintenance and repair," the recent report adds.

The play areas consists of seven timber towers, formerly all connected by bridges, rope, nets and tunnels.

But in recent years parts of the park, including a bridge which goes between two towers over a footpath, have been removed because they "deteriorated beyond economical repair", according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

The park has already had some upgrades in recent years, with the original shipwreck area replaced with a timber pirate ship in 2022.

In 2023 a new concessions kiosk and toilet block were also opened.