Children can look forward to a summer of playing on brand new equipment, as their village’s only park will soon get a major upgrade.

The community in Oakworth, Keighley, has been raising money to update Holden Park’s play area for the past year, and children even got the final say on the design of the new facility.

The fundraising was spearheaded by mum Jo Spencer, who felt the village deserved better than the current play area, which suffered from peeling paint and dated equipment.

She regularly takes her daughters Scarlett, aged five, and Martha, two, to play at the park and wanted something better for them and the rest of the village’s children.

Months of hard work, helped by the Friends of Holden Park, will finally pay off later this month when the existing equipment is replaced.

The money, almost £70,000 so far, has come from various sources, including donations from businesses and a £60,000 grant from the WREN landfill community fund.

The play area will close on Monday, April 29, and improvement work is expected to take six to seven weeks, with the new-look play area hopefully ready in time for the summer.

The group’s work is far from over, as they hope to continue fundraising to provide play equipment for teenagers at the park, creating a multi-use games area with exercise equipment.

Jackie McGinnis, of the Friends of Holden Park, said: “The process of raising the money has been amazingly quick. Everyone involved is really energetic. It is the only play area in the village, so it is really important to the children.”

Mrs Spencer, who started campaigning for improvements last May, said: “We have finished this part, but there is still more to do. Hopefully it will create a momentum for more fundraising for the park.

“A while back I had some friends down and I was showing them Holden Park. It is a fantastic park, but I was embarrassed by the play area. We are such a big village we need the improvements.”

The work will also be funded by donations from Keighley and Bradford councils, Pennine Playground, Rotherwood Recruitment, Hayfield Robinson and Oakworth Primary School.

The group is also working with Bradford Council to set up a Community Covenant bid. It would be a partnership with the Ministry of Defence to create a fitness trail through the park and its woods for older users.

To donate to the park improvements, email holdenparkplay@btinternet.com