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Press Release

3 July 2020

Play areas and outdoor gyms to reopen with new guidelines

Fareham Borough Council’s play areas will reopen tomorrow (Saturday 4th July), following the latest changes to lockdown rules.

All 43 of the Borough’s play areas have been closed since March due to Covid-19.

Each play area has undergone a safety inspection to ensure it is ready to open, and regular routine play area inspections will continue.

To help reduce the spread of the virus, families are asked to follow these guidelines:

Social Distancing – visitors should adhere to social distance guidelines. To help with this it is recommended that one adult or family member accompanies one child, where required, when entering the play area. If a site looks busy, visitors should wait at a safe distance or return later in order to ensure social distancing is maintained.
Cleanliness – the Council will undertake regular cleaning of all play areas focusing on high volume touch points. However, to ensure risk is minimised, visitors are asked to:

Bring wipes to clean obvious touch points before children use the equipment such as swing chains, rocker handles, seesaw handles and gates;
Bring hand sanitiser or wipes to clean children’s hands during and after the visit;
Wash hands thoroughly when returning home.

Food and drink - consumption of food and drink in the play area is not allowed.
Rubbish – visitors are asked to dispose of all litter in the bins provided, particularly any face coverings, gloves and cleansing wipes. If a bin is full, rubbish should be taken home.

These guidelines are based on Government recommendations regarding reopening of play areas. The Council will be updating the play area section of its website with detailed guidance, including maximum numbers suggested at each site, to assist visitors to use play areas safely. The link once live will be www.fareham.gov.uk/playareas.

In line with the Government announcement, the Council will also reopen outdoor gyms from tomorrow (4th July) followed by multi-use games areas next week. As with play areas, users will be encouraged to take steps to reduce the spread of the virus. Where applicable this includes wiping any equipment before use and keeping their hands clean and trying to maintain social distancing rules.

Executive Member for Streetscene at Fareham Borough Council, Cllr Simon Martin, said: “I’m sure families have missed being able to use their local play areas – so I’m delighted that we will be able to welcome children back to them once again. Our grounds maintenance team have been busy getting them all really.
“I’m also pleased that we can reopen our outdoor gyms – having space to get active outside is great for our wellbeing. While this is good news, it’s really important that residents follow the guidance for each site relating to hygiene and social distancing. By following these steps, we can have fun and take exercise in a safe way.”

ENDS