Vandal blight ‘could close’ Otterton playground

VANDALS who regularly trash a children’s playground in Otterton could find their selfish actions close it for good.

VANDALS who regularly trash a children’s playground in Otterton could find their selfish actions close the valued facility for good.

For months civic leaders have fought a losing battle against yobs leaving broken glass and exposed nails in play equipment in the Jubilee Playground.

Despite weekly efforts to clear the increasing vandalism, the parish council has been criticised by safety experts over the state of the area.

In a bid to protect local youngsters’ safety, the council has considered removing the play equipment most affected, installing CCTV, or closing the playground completely.

“It would be a very sad day if the actions of a very few cause the majority to lose this facility,” said chairman John Edmonds.

He said broken glass was regularly found inside the playground’s crawl tunnel and a Wendy house was also frequently pulled down.

Mr Edmonds said the Royal Society for the Protection of Accidents (RoSpa) had criticised the parish council over the state of the playground- despite its best efforts to clear the damage on a weekly basis.

He added vandals were putting the safety of small children at risk.

“The final straw is that the latest RoSpa safety inspection has criticised the council,” said Mr Edmonds.

“We’re now considering blocking up the tunnel and taking down the Wendy house to avoid any harm coming to the younger children. We have even discussed closing the playground completely.”