Aerial view of Ashton Park

The tragic death of a local young boy, Ashton Hazell, caused great distress in the Snape Wood community. Ashton was a huge basketball fan who travelled with youth workers to other areas in order to play his favourite sport. Ashton’s friends from the River Leen School and his family wanted a new development at the back of Snape Wood Community Centre to be named after him.

This designated park area had previously attracted neither the local youth to play sports nor the younger children to use the play park facilities. The Community Association and other residents explained that because the play park was set back from the road and adjacent to a wooded area younger children were deterred from playing on it. It therefore attracted older youths who used it as a meeting point. The grassed area, provided for sport, had no suitable equipment on it other than two mini goal posts that were in a poor state of repair.

The project emerged through consultation with local residents, youth and play workers and young people in the area. The old play park was removed and a new one created at the front of the site and linked to the Community Centre. A youth shelter, a ball court on a tarmac area and specialised park equipment, aimed at young people, are now provided as part of the development. The young people from Snape Wood were able to choose from various designs for this equipment in order to make sure that the project delivers and responds to their needs.

New perimeter fencing is currently being planned, and formal applications for funding are to be made once the Friends group is formally constituted.

It is also anticipated that in the future the group will be seeking to arrange basketball coaching and tournaments and will also be drawing up plans for a community garden on the site.

Text updated from Bulwell Vision