CHILDREN at Sycamore Adventure Playground have a new play area thanks to the generosity of three Black Country businesses.

The Dudley Council-run facility, which offers outdoor play, forest school sessions and arts and craft activities, was offered play equipment and business volunteers to install it at the play area on Old Park Farm Estate.

Play equipment was donated by intu Merry Hill from its retired timber play area and shopping centre staff, along with employees from Barclays Bank and Sycamore Adventure, spent two days dismantling the playground and transporting it over to its new home.

After asking the youngsters what they would like to see made from the timber, the overriding consensus was castles and pirate ships.

Legal & General sent 15 members of staff to help re-assemble the wood into new structures on site and a new pirate ship now takes pride of place at the play area.

Volunteers also lopped trees, litter picked and filled a skip on site, before returning on Wednesday (October 19) to put in another days graft to paint the pirate ship, continue work on an outdoor tool use area and begin work creating a castle.

Councillor Ian Cooper, cabinet member for children’s services said: “Sycamore Adventure Play is a wonderful resource for our children and young people and already has so much to offer in terms of learning through play.

“The addition of this re-purposed equipment, and the generosity of these companies, intu Merry Hill, Barclays and Legal & General in offering us their resources and staff time has enriched the site further.

“The new play equipment is fantastic for the children, but also to know that there are generous-spirited people out there eager to support local causes sets a great example to our children and young people using the centre and is a great example of a community council at work.”

For more information about the centre visit www.sycamoreadventure.co.uk or call 01384 813828.