HC Deb 06 February 1978 vol 943 cc403-4W
Mr. Rose

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment (1) whether he will consult the British Safety Council on the subject of standards to be laid down concerning the manufacture and erection of equipment in children's playgrounds;

(2) whether he will seek to lay down minimum mandatory obligations on local authorities in connection with the inspection and maintenance of equipment in children's playgrounds.

Mr. Freeson

I understand that the new British Standard for play equipment, now under consideration and to which I referred in my answer to my hon. Friend on 12th December 1977, will include advice on the construction, installation, inspection and maintenance of equipment. I shall consider what further guidance to local authorities will be appropriate in the light of that.

The British Standards Institution, which undertakes consultations on standards, says that the British Safety Council has not commented on the preparation of the new standard on play equipment yet the BSI would still be glad to receive any comments the British Safety Council wishes to make.

Mr. Rose

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment whether he has considered the publication "Make Waste Space Play Space" produced by the organisation Fair Play for Children; and what action he is taking to encourage such provision of additional play space in deprived areas.

Mr. Freeson

The publication referred by my hon. Friend has been received by my Department in support of an application by the Fair Play for Children campaign for aid under the programme of small grants to national and regional voluntary bodies working in the environmental field. The application is being considered together with other applications received.

The provision of play space was among the purposes for which Government assistance was made available to local authorities in selected areas under the Inner Cities Construction Package for 1977–79. Grants are also payable for projects in areas of special social need under the Government's urban programme. More generally, housing subsidy is available for the provision of play space on new and existing local authority housing developments.