Islander starts fundraising for play park repairs

An islander has started a fundraising campaign to help re-open the Garrison play park on St Mary's.

Scilly Fish owner Eugene Hogan, who has two children, decided to start raising money after the Council said it may not be able to pay for needed repairs.

The park, which features the popular pirate ship, has been closed since early September due to safety concerns.

Eugene wrote on the campaign's online fundraising page: "Hi all, as most of you know the Pirate Ship Play Park on the Garrison Field has fallen into disrepair and has been closed for a few months now. I have been in contact with the Council of the Isles of Scilly and they said that an inspection of 3 play parks has been completed. Unfortunately, they cannot fund all these projects.

"Therefore WE must try to help fund the repairs. Lets do this for the kids of Scilly and the holiday makers for years to come. I like many others will appreciate what ever you can afford to help with this cause."

Replacing equipment at the Garrison play park is included in the Council's Capital Programme for next year, with the caveat that the scheme 'will only commence if external funding is secured'.

Responding to the new campaign, Cllr Joel Williams wrote on Facebook: "Thanks for raising the profile of this. As Lead Member for Children and a user of the facilities, I just wished to offer reassurance that the Council ARE looking at all options for the site. My understanding is that a safety inspector was over [on Wednesday] to help asses the condition of the equipment and likely cost of refurbishment.

"Council also added a sum to the Capital Maintenance Budget recently to potentially assist with some of these costs. Depending how things develop, it might be helpful to harvest some community input for some of the painting and re-staining that would be required. I can update further when I know more."

Donate to Eugene's campaign at https://www.gofundme.com/the-pirate-ship-play-park-the-garrison.