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Safety fears put a stop to park swings

Swings, which do not comply with national playground standards, have been removed from Carterton’s Carrington Park.

A Carterton District Council [CDC] spokesperson said they received a service request on Sunday regarding a broken swing.

‘Danger, keep out’ tape was put up around the equipment, and the swings were removed from the frame.

The removal follows a report released last year recommending the renewal or replacement of the swings.

“Our parks team responded to assess the situation, and we made the decision to close off all the swings, ahead of further maintenance to repair the broken swing and make similar replacements to each swing on the set,” a spokesperson said.

“Our parks and reserves team have started ordering the parts to complete the repairs to the swings. We complete inspections of all playgrounds and parks, team members check our equipment at least weekly, and complete a daily visual check.”

The compliance report, which was released under the Local Government Official Information and Meetings Act last year, said CDC’s playgrounds were 61 per cent compliant with national standards.

Nine playground items had a “poor” condition rating, and 24 had a rating of “good” or above.

The council aims to achieve 85 per cent compliance over the next five years at Carrington, Howard Booth, South End, and Bird Parks.

The report recommended the renewal or replacement of the South End Park turnstile, and Carrington Park’s swings, lullaby swing, mouse wheel, and flying fox.

The replacement or renewal of Carrington Park’s safety surface loose-fill and tiles was also recommended.

A problem area identified in the report was entrapment potential.

Fingers or clothing could get caught in components of slides, swing chains, and the see-saw.

Swings can be brought up to standard by placing a protective sleeve over the chain. – NZLDR

    Public Interest Journalism funded through NZ On Air

Emily Ireland
Emily Ireland
Emily Ireland is Wairarapa’s Local Democracy Reporter, a Public Interest Journalism role funded through NZ On Air. Emily has worked at the Wairarapa Times-Age for seven years and has a keen interest in council decision-making and transparency.

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