£350k man-made beaches plan for Sutton in Surrey (From Your Local Guardian)

£350k man-made beaches plan for Sutton in Surrey

11:30am Thursday 28th January 2010 in

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A man-made beach is planned for Sutton in a £325,000 facelift.

Beddington Park is applying for a grant to carry out a facelift this year, which could see the construction of the man-made beaches and recreational facilities, according to new proposals.

If the “public realm application”, submitted by the Friends of Beddington and Grange Park, is accepted the waterways would also be dredged and vital environmental regeneration work completed.

The proposed cost of £325,000 would see £50,000 spent on narrowing the River Wandle and improving water flow and £25,000 on creating the artifical beaches at locations along the river Another £200,000 would be used to dredge the boating lake and watercourse, and provide facilities to teach water crafts and safety.

An adventure playground has also been planned for the Canon Bridge area of the park with zipwires and ladders built to help “teenagers let off steam” at a cost of £50,000.

The Friends of Beddington and Grange Park’s application states: “We have been promoting the need for works to the Wandle and its immediate environs with the objectives of adding environmental, ecological, recreational, biodiversity and educational advantages.

“Our ideas have been the subject of meetings with representatives of the Environment Agency and Sutton Parks management and we have gained a fair degree of support for them from both sources.”

Councillor Ruth Dombey, deputy leader at Sutton Council, said: “Public realm funding for local committees is used to develop local areas to enable them to thrive and help meet the needs of residents and businesses as well as making improvements to see they continue to be attractive places to work, shop and live.

“The Beddington and Wallington local committee invited the public to put forward their ideas about how the funding for 2010-11 should be spent and will now consider the suggestions received. Further ideas from residents and local groups are still welcome.”