Belfast City Council has granted planning permission for the development of a new public park and play park in the Colin area in the west of the city.

Funding for the project comes from the Executive Office through the Urban Villages Initiative which is a key action within the Executive's Together: Building a United Community (TBUC) Strategy, designed to foster positive community identities, build community capacity, and improve the physical environment.

Plans for the new park, situated along the Stewartstown Road, include four main active zones:

• The play and imagination zone's playground will have a range of accessible and sensory equipment, enabling children of all abilities to play safely together     

• The activity and interaction zone has space for outdoor fitness and a cycle pump track as well as marked routes for walking, jogging, running and cycling

• The community and leisure zone will be a large grass area with reinforced surfacing and drainage, allowing for a full programme of events such as summer festivals, concerts, community fun days, markets and fairs

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• The learning and exploration zone will be a place that can be used by all visitors and by local groups and schools as an outdoor classroom area

Councillor Matt Garrett, chair of Belfast City Council's Planning Committee, said that the council will continue to work in partnership with the Urban Villages Initiative to deliver the new park. 

He said: "This is a significant investment in the Colin area. A park of this size will offer something for people of all ages and abilities, whether they want to walk the dog, go for a run, take the children to the play park, or just spend some time in peaceful surroundings.

"Work on the park will take place while the new £15 million Brook Leisure Centre, located just a short distance away, also takes shape as part of council's leisure transformation programme for the city.

"Both of these projects will significantly contribute towards council's commitment to regenerate local neighbourhoods, creating places where local people can improve their health and wellbeing."

Mark Browne, Director of Strategic Policy, Equality and Good Relations at the Executive Office, added: "I am delighted to see planning approved for this next step in the development of the Colin Urban Village area. To date, the Executive's investment of £3 million in the new Colin Connect Transport Hub, the Colin Town Square and the Twinbrook Link scheme has already made a significant impact on the physical environment.

"There will be a further substantial investment in this high quality destination park, subject to business case approval. The new park in Colin will provide a fantastic local facility for everyone in this community, but more than that, now that the Glider connects the city, it will attract visitors from far and wide.

"We couldn't have achieved this impact without our delivery partners at Belfast City Council, the Department for Infrastructure and the Department for Communities. It is great to see this joined up approach delivering on the Urban Villages Initiative's core aim of developing thriving places for the people of Colin."