A MAKEOVER of the Anning Road playing fields in Lyme Regis looks set to finally become a reality after councillors deemed remodelling the area a priority for the 2015/2016 financial year.

Last May, parents labelled the playing field a ‘danger zone’ and called for improvements.

Parents said the play equipment was dated, dangerous and poorly designed and called for the town council to help fund a new park.

At a council meeting on April 30, Lyme Regis Play Park Fundraising Association advisor Cheryl Reynolds called for the town council to look again at a solution. Town councillors then deemed the playing fields a main concern over the next two years at a strategy and policy committee meeting on May 7.

Cllr Rikey Austin and Cllr Lucy Campbell immediately picked the Anning Road play area as an ‘important priority’ out of a list of 17 other possible projects.

Cllr Michaela Ellis also highlighted it as a key issue after recently meeting the play park fundraising association and seeing their hard work.

Association advisor Cheryl Reynolds told the Lyme Regis News: “I’m glad the council has now agreed to prioritise the playing fields, but there is still very much work to be done.

“All the park facilities need to be thrown out and we need to start completely from scratch.

“I recently set up the association with local mums to begin fundraising, and we raised £181 with a cake sale at the May Day Fete.

“Our efforts have shown the council we mean business and they are now prepared to put their hands in their pockets.”

Cheryl is also keen to create a fundraising event around the Guitars on the Beach event this summer, after a similar fundraiser last year raised £2,600 for the town’s new skate park. Councillors also prioritised replacing the seafront railings, as well as the roof above the By the Bay restaurant and amusement arcade after Cllr Owen Lovell said the move would ‘protect the stream of income’ from the area.

In addition, a working group helping provide mapping and registration of Lyme’s open spaces and footpaths will be set up. Councillors highlighted that projects not prioritised at this stage will ‘not be forgotten’.

A final list of costed projects will return to the committee on September 24 and will precede the budget-setting process.

The list will propose a set of objectives for 2015 to 2018 and in effect, a medium-term project for the town.