08 March 2007 00:00 Nottinghamshire children enjoy safer playground thanks to Central Networks

Some lucky Nottinghamshire children will get a chance to try out the brand new safety surface at their playground in a special ceremony at Gotham Memorial Hall and Recreation ground.

The playground, which is regularly used by over a 100 youngsters from Gotham and the surrounding area, was resurfaced with a £2,500 grant from Central Networks, the electricity distribution company for central England.

The project, which will be officially opened on Monday March 12th at 10am, was one of the winning applicants for the company’s £70,000 Safer Environment Fund, which makes money available for projects that can demonstrate a lasting and positive effect on the local environment.

Phil Wilson, Customer Operations Manager for Central Networks, said:
“The new playground isn’t just a safer place for children to play, it’s also a meeting area for their parents and plays an important role in the heart of the community.

“We’re delighted to be able to help and would encourage more local groups to apply for funds to help improve their community and environment.”

Gill Hind, from the Gotham Memorial Hall and Recreational Ground trust, said: “We recently installed some new play equipment to the area so we needed to resurface it. By providing the money for the new surface, Central Networks has helped us to make the playground a safer place for everyone who uses it. “

The Safer Environment Fund is open to all local community groups and not for profit organisations with their own bank account located in the Central Networks distribution region, which covers central England. Groups can apply for grants of up to £2,500. For more information and to download an application form visit www.central-networks.co.uk/sef.

Ends

Notes to editors:
• Central Networks is the new name for Midlands Electricity and East Midlands Electricity. The company brings power to 4.9 million customers across the East and West Midlands through 133,000km of underground and overhead cables – enough to go round the Earth almost four times – and via almost 97,000 substations;
• Central Networks covers an area from the Peak District in the north to parts of Bristol in the south, and from the Welsh Borders to the Lincolnshire Coast.

For further information and photographs contact:
Jamee Majid on 024 7618 3679
A selection of Central Networks pictures is available free of charge to the media by registering at www.newscast.co.uk and looking under Distribution