A NEW water play area will be installed in a popular county park after the project was given the green light to go ahead.

The £330,000 scheme will be replacing the existing water play area at Pershore’s Abbey Park, which was installed more than 15 years ago.

The current water play area is also increasingly expensive to run costing between £10,000 and £15,000 a year in maintenance costs alone.

Work is expected to get underway in September this year and should be open by May 2024.

The final design is being worked up, but it will reflect the setting of the park.

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Cllr Emma Stokes, executive board member for resident and customer services, said: “We have high-quality award-winning parks in Wychavon. We know how much they are valued by our residents which is why we continue to invest in them.

"This project will create a modern, exciting facility for users to enjoy and I look forward to sharing the design with residents when we have it.”

Wychavon’s Executive Board approved the funding at a meeting on Wednesday, June 21.

It is the second part of Wychavon’s water play replacement programme, following the recent opening of the new water play area in Evesham’s Abbey Park, which has proved popular.

It is expected work to replace Droitwich Spa’s water play area in Lido Park will take place towards the end of next year.