Dear Messenger What is going on with the state of the playgrounds and facilities for children in the area? If the people of Burngreave needed any other sign of the Council's neglect of public spaces surely no more is needed than their neglect of our children. The lack of any decent spaces for children to play in an unsupervised but safe way is nothing short of criminal. As a Burngreave Road resident, the nearest swings and slide to me are 1/2 mile away at Abbeyfield Park. There was once a small play area behind Andover Street, but it has never been maintained or repaired by the council while I've been living in Burngreave. About 18 months ago they took the remains away, leaving only four solitary swings, no little slide, no roundabout, no climbing frame, only raw tarmac. Why was it not replaced? What purpose is there in depriving children under 5 of fun? There is still a most wonderful large slide there, arguably the best in the city and certainly the best in Burngreave. It's set in the side of the hill and has an extreme twist in the middle that shakes your heart when you go through it. Of course thats if you can stomach watching your children playing around needles, glass shards, and burnt automobile parts. Abbeyfield Park's play area is another that's only been minimally maintained over the last few years. Indeed the Burngreave Messenger of December 2001 in an article entitled 'The Future of Abbeyfield Park' reads 'After a site meeting with Ian Mitchell from the Sheffield City Council, he was shocked by the state that the playground had fallen into. He said that broken pieces of equipment will be repaired and that there will be a general clear up of the area. All the equipment will be given a coat of paint in the spring.' Well I'm still waiting! What other decent children's play parks are there in the area? I sometimes wish that the plague of regeneration professionals currently infesting Burngreave, would either: 1. Do some work instead of just talking about it in endless theme groups, hiding decisions behind the hidden agendas of Government Office. Or: 2. Go away and leave their salaries behind so they can be spent on something useful. Maybe that's a bit strong but it's easy to understand how feelings like that arise when faced with the long-term neglect we deal with every day. Alan Dawson Dear Messenger I am writing to express my serious concern regarding a number of road safety issues in my local area: Firstly, the pedestrian crossing at the junction of Pitsmoor, Burngreave and Barnsley Roads (in front of the post office), is being abused by road users. Drivers are failing to comply, not only with the traffic and road signals, but also with the 'Lollipop lady', which is clearly endangering life. Secondly, traffic using Pitsmoor Road towards its junction with Minna Road frequently impinges on the pavement as a result of the roads narrow lanes. More recently there have been daily occurrences where traffic has mounted the kerbs as children have walked to school. This stretch of pavement from the top of Minna Road to the car park of the Toll Gate public house is no longer safe for pedestrians and particularly the many unaccompanied children walking to school. It would seem that in the absence of either Pitsmoor Road reverting back to its original two lanes, or road widening, that the erection of a permanent barrier is required in order to protect people on the pavement. Thirdly, I would like to draw the Council's attention to the absence of a crossing at the junction of Minna Road and Pitsmoor Road. This is particularly surprising for many multi-factorial reasons, which include; a corridor for children walking to numerous schools and play schemes in the area; local health clinics; churches; as well as the many different vulnerable adults who either live directly around the junction or use statutory day care facilities near by, who struggle with this junction on a daily basis. Finally I would like to congratulate the council for acting quickly to put temporary steel blocks along Pitsmoor Road, as a temporary measure, in an attempt to stop vehicles mounting the kerb. Yours sincerely
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