A group of young mums have been hailed as “real community heroines” after they created a £40,000 playground for their children.
The new play area at the Glanrafon estate, in Llanrwst, was officially opened by Andrew Bowden, the Chief Executive of the housing association, Cartrefi Conwy.
Mr Bowden said that site, with its colourful modern equipment, would be a lasting tribute to the hard work and dedication of the mums.
Among the 80 tenants on the Glanrafon estate are several young families, but the old playground had seen much better days.
They voiced their concerns to Emyr Hughes, Neighbourhood Coordinator for Cartrefi Conwy, the housing association who took over responsibility for housing from Conwy County Borough Council in September 2008.
Emyr passed on their concerns to Community Involvement Coordinator Vicky Kelly who began working closely with the mothers on the playground project.
The group secured the bulk of the cost of the project by submitting bids totalling £30,000 into Cartrefi Conwy’s Community Chest and Environmental funds which were set up to help the housing association’s tenants access funding for projects benefitting their communities.
The rest of the money came from Conwy County Borough Council Parks and Gardens and Rural Conwy Partnership.
According to Andrew Bowden, the success of the Glanrafon playground project “sums up what Cartrefi Conwy is all about”.
He added: “The Glanrafon mothers are real community heroines. They deserve our congratulations.
“Through projects like this we get a sense that we are delivering what we said we would achieve when Cartrefi Conwy was established.
“We are creating communities to be proud of by supporting and encouraging self-help.
“I’m very proud that Cartrefi Conwy has been catalyst of support in this community involvement.
“I just hope more and more communities see what’s been achieved in Llanrwst and take advantage of what we can provide. These young mothers are a shining example.”
The scheme also impressed the judges at the Tenant Participation Advisory Service ceremony in Cardiff where they won an award.
Among those involved in the project was busy mother-of-three Cheryl Jones, 21.
“The new playground is 10 times better than it was before. It’s fantastic and the kids love it and it’s much safer.
“It’s much safer because it’s all fenced off so it’s just what we wanted really.
“Vicky’s been fantastic and Emyr has also been great. If we need anything they’re there straight away to help us.”
Joanne Towns, 26, who also has three children, is equally thrilled with the new playground.
She said: “I’m over the moon and now when you see the kids faces it makes all the hard work worthwhile. It gives you a real sense of achievement.”
Vicky Kelly was extremely proud of the effort put in by the Glanrafon supermums.
She said: “We’ve worked with them over 12 months now, they’ve managed to secure just under £40,000 in funding which is remarkable.
“This project was about empowering them to help their own community- they deserve all the recognition they have received at today’s grand opening.”
