A play area in Crawshawbooth has received an upgrade and children who use it are said to be “thrilled”.

Moller Ring play area has been open to visitors for the last few weeks and it’s been a big hit with children from the nearby Crawshawbooth Primary School.

Rossendale Council and Community Interest Company Proffitts – Investing in Communities worked together to bring the project to life.

The new play space includes traditional timber play equipment like a climbing frame and swings, as well as natural play elements like earth mounds, tunnels, bridges and a new trim trail with balance beams and monkey bars.

Crawshawbooth Primary School children have already designed new signs for the play area, and this week some of the children from the school gardening group added the finishing touches by planting hundreds of young plants on site too.

Mr Willan, Headteacher of the school, said: “’The children are thrilled that the play area has been improved, and they’ve loved sharing ideas for the space, working on sign designs, and getting hands on with the planting – even in the rain!

“We can’t wait for the children to see the plants bloom over the summer, they’ll be a great addition to an already wonderful play area and this project has helped to support many areas of our curriculum.’’

Rachael Gildert, a landscape architect from Proffitts who worked on the project, said: ‘’The children from the gardening group were all absolute stars.

“They worked incredibly hard in awful weather, and we can’t wait to see the impact that the plants make over the next few months.

“We couldn’t have completed the project without the help of the school, and we’re delighted that the pupils and staff have enjoyed taking part.

“We’d also particularly like to thank the funders from FCC Community Action Fund, Lancashire Environment Fund and Rossendale Council for making this happen.’’

Councillor Liz McInnes, lead member for communities at Rossendale Council, said: “We’re thrilled with the improvements to the new play area.

“It’s heartwarming to see the children from Crawshawbooth Primary involved in the planting, their efforts have made this space even more special and a true community project.”