A NEW play area has opened in Salisbury that was described as “accessible to all” – but a disability group in Salisbury said more could have been done.

The River Park play area at Ashley Road Open Space opened to much fanfare on August 21 as children made the most of the new state-of-the-art equipment, which includes a colourful climbing structure, and features artwork created by Sarum St. Paul’s schoolchildren in collaboration with artist Zac Newham.

The project forms part of the broader River Park project which aims to transform the city centre to alleviate flood risk, increase biodiversity and improve facilities for the community.

The play area was created in collaboration with the Environment Agency (EA), Wiltshire Council and Salisbury City Council.

When Wiltshire Council announced the opening of the play area, they described it as “accessible”, with features like flat surfacing, wheelchair access, and equipment specifically designed for children of all abilities.

The play area features a centrally positioned basket swing, offering inclusive play for children with varying abilities, a wider slide designed to accommodate different levels of support needs and accessible entry points at the base of the climbing towers.

But the Disability Interest Group of Salisbury (DIGS), who helped provide input into the plans, said the park does not truly cater to those that are disabled due to the lack of inclusive equipment, despite it being described as an “accessible space”.

Group leader Kez Adey said that despite spending many hours with the EA to ensure the project was truly inclusive, they expected more.

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“Although we knew there wouldn’t be any wheelchair accessible equipment we definitely expected more inclusivity than there is,” she said.

“With the amount of money spent on the project the lack of inclusivity within the park is disappointing.

“We were not the only ones involved with the planning and [we] haven’t communicated over the plans in over two years.

“Its also disappointing that it does not match the #playforeveryone mission which we have in partnership with Salisbury City Council.

“We have arranged a meeting with the parks manager of Salisbury City Council and some disappointed residents to discuss what does and doesn’t work to help them in the future.”

Other parks that cater to wheelchair users often see equipment such as a wheelchair roundabout, a swing and play towers that allow users to enter via a ramp – but these often come at a higher cost that more traditional equipment.

The EA says the wider Salisbury River Park area is accessible to all wheelchair users, and that they worked “extensively” with local residents, schools, accessibility groups, and a wide range of stakeholders from across the city to ensure that diverse voices were heard and reflected in the final design.

They made reference to the potential cost of more diverse equipment and said that stakeholders were given the opportunity to feed back on the plans before construction started.

“While it is not possible to provide every piece of specialist equipment within the play area, due to space, cost, and long-term maintenance considerations, careful thought has been given to creating a balanced, inclusive design that meets the needs of the widest possible user group,” an EA spokesperson said.

“The design for the play area was agreed well in advance of its construction and was presented to all key stakeholders.”

They go on to say that the area is at risk of irregular flooding, and the equipment needs to be able to be designed to withstand this.

This precluded certain items of equipment from being included, including sand pits and any play equipment with mechanisms that are at ground level such as surface level roundabouts.

This was made clear in the consultations on this play area, they added.

Salisbury City Council and Wiltshire Council were contacted for comment.