On Thursday, June 5, Brackley Town Mayor Cllr Kevin Dixon cut the ribbon to the new play area, which was immediately put to good use by children from Bracken Leas Primary School.

Town clerk Sue Crouch said: "We wanted to create an exciting and secure area where parents and grandparents could bring their children and grandchildren to play."

She said the new facilities were required because the town council had no longer been able to obtain parts for the original equipment, forcing a section of the site to be closed at Christmas for safety reasons.

Cllr Kath Bonner-Dunham, of Brackley Town Council, said: "The play area will now be open in time for the school holidays and should prove to be a great experience for the younger children of Brackley, and a good meeting place for mums for some considerable years."

The park's new play area, which includes a slide, climbing frame and safety surfacing, is the first phase of a £135,000 project to improve play facilities around Brackley.

Created by Sutcliffe Play, the new play area has been designed to meet the wishes of the donor of Brackley Park, who bequeathed it to the National Trust in 1928, 'to ensure The Park being preserved as an open space for the use of the public for ever.'