After extensive soil tests the samples taken from the Chalford valley playing field, aka ‘the swings’ have been cleared of anything suspicious and the playing field is now open again.
The removed swings have been reattached to their frames and the grass has been cut just in time for the end of the summer. The area was looking very desolate after its long closure as shown below.
The field which I believe was once an old mill pond had been filled in with rubbish and asbestos during the mid 40s. The photo below is all that remains of the old mill known as Tyler’s Mill.
The sign says to avoid the molehills as they have bits of glass in them pushed up by the moles, but other than that it’s good to go.
Most of the original play equipment from the 70s such as the big old double see-saw and slide were removed years ago, presumably for safety reasons.
The fabulous rocket climbing frame has stood the test of time though. No doubt hundreds of kids will have flown it into outer space and back many times in their imagination.
A look into its recent past
An interesting place, it used to be used for community events (it probably still is) where a makeshift stage would host a local band with power being provided via a very long lead from a nearby house.
The Blues Brothers film was once shown on a colour telly hooked up to a video recorder. This must have been back in the early 80s which was an interesting period due to the political unrest towards the end of the cold war and the fact that the Chalford valley had its fair share of hippies.
Politics were a thing in the valley, sat atop the bonfire one Guy Fawkes night were effigies of Thatcher and Reagan.
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