Play park renewal council funding: FOI release
- Published
- 1 July 2025
- Directorate
- Children and Families Directorate
- FOI reference
- FOI/202500458980
- Date received
- 25 March 2025
- Date responded
- 14 April 2025
Information request and response under the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002
Information requested
1. Since the announcement in 2021 it is claimed that £5m of the £60m was being made available to the councils. Was this £5m passed on and if so to which councils?
2. Since 2021 and the first tranche of £5m was announced if it was delivered how much more of the £60m promised has been made available to the councils?
3. How many play parks have benefited since 2021 from this support that was announced?
Response
Question 1 - Since the announcement in 2021 it is claimed that £5m of the £60m was being made available to the councils. Was this £5m passed on and if so to which councils?
In 2021/22, the Scottish Government committed £5 million for the play park renewal programme. The following table shows the allocation of funding from the Scottish Government to each local authority in that financial year.
| Local Authority | 2021/22 |
|---|---|
| Aberdeen City Council | £188,000 |
| Aberdeenshire Council | £296,000 |
| Angus Council | £108,000 |
| Argyll and Bute | £76,000 |
| City of Edinburgh Council | £414,000 |
| Clackmannanshire Council | £47,000 |
| Comhairle nan Eilean Siar Council | £29,000 |
| Dumfries and Galloway Council | £140,000 |
| Dundee City Council | £125,000 |
| East Ayrshire Council | £112,000 |
| East Dunbartonshire Council | £102,000 |
| East Lothian Council | £108,000 |
| East Renfrewshire Council | £102,000 |
| Falkirk Council | £147,000 |
| Fife Council | £344,000 |
| Glasgow City Council | £525,000 |
| Highland Council | £234,000 |
| Inverclyde Council | £65,000 |
| Midlothian Council | £98,000 |
| Moray Council | £92,000 |
| North Ayrshire Council | £118,000 |
| North Lanarkshire Council | £324,000 |
| Orkney Islands Council | £24,000 |
| Perth and Kinross Council | £140,000 |
| Renfrewshire Council | £158,000 |
| Scottish Borders Council | £113,000 |
| Shetland Islands Council | £28,000 |
| South Ayrshire Council | £94,000 |
| South Lanarkshire Council | £298,000 |
| Stirling Council | £84,000 |
| West Dunbartonshire Council | £81,000 |
| West Lothian Council | £186,000 |
Question 2 - Since 2021 and the first tranche of £5m was announced if it was delivered how much more of the £60m promised has been made available to the councils?
The breakdown of further and committed funding to local authorities from the Scottish Government is as follows:
- 2022/23 - £5 million
- 2023/24 - £10 million
- 2024/25 - £15 million
- 2025/26 - £25 million
The following table shows the allocation of funding to each local authority since 2022/23.
| Local Authority | 2022/23 | 2023/24 | 2024/25 | 2025/26 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aberdeen City Council | £185,000 | £373,000 | £559,000 | £932,000 |
| Aberdeenshire Council | £308,000 | £616,000 | £924,000 | £1,539,000 |
| Angus Council | £111,000 | £220,000 | £330,000 | £550,000 |
| Argyll and Bute | £79,000 | £157,000 | £235,000 | £391,000 |
| City of Edinburgh Council | £406,000 | £811,000 | £1,216,000 | £2,027,000 |
| Clackmannanshire Council | £46,000 | £93,000 | £139,000 | £231,000 |
| Comhairle nan Eilean Siar Council | £32,000 | £62,000 | £93,000 | £156,000 |
| Dumfries and Galloway Council | £146,000 | £291,000 | £437,000 | £728,000 |
| Dundee City Council | £122,000 | £243,000 | £365,000 | £609,000 |
| East Ayrshire Council | £112,000 | £224,000 | £336,000 | £561,000 |
| East Dunbartonshire Council | £100,000 | £202,000 | £303,000 | £505,000 |
| East Lothian Council | £108,000 | £218,000 | £327,000 | £545,000 |
| East Renfrewshire Council | £101,000 | £204,000 | £306,000 | £509,000 |
| Falkirk Council | £145,000 | £289,000 | £434,000 | £723,000 |
| Fife Council | £342,000 | £681,000 | £1,022,000 | £1,703,000 |
| Glasgow City Council | £514,000 | £1,028,000 | £1,542,000 | £2,570,000 |
| Highland Council | £245,000 | £488,000 | £732,000 | £1,219,000 |
| Inverclyde Council | £63,000 | £126,000 | £189,000 | £314,000 |
| Midlothian Council | £97,000 | £197,000 | £295,000 | £492,000 |
| Moray Council | £94,000 | £188,000 | £282,000 | £469,000 |
| North Ayrshire Council | £117,000 | £231,000 | £347,000 | £578,000 |
| North Lanarkshire Council | £319,000 | £635,000 | £952,000 | £1,586,000 |
| Orkney Islands Council | £26,000 | £51,000 | £77,000 | £128,000 |
| Perth and Kinross Council | £144,000 | £291,000 | £437,000 | £728,000 |
| Renfrewshire Council | £155,000 | £307,000 | £461,000 | £768,000 |
| Scottish Borders Council | £117,000 | £234,000 | £352,000 | £586,000 |
| Shetland Islands Council | £31,000 | £61,000 | £91,000 | £151,000 |
| South Ayrshire Council | £94,000 | £189,000 | £283,000 | £472,000 |
| South Lanarkshire Council | £296,000 | £597,000 | £896,000 | £1,493,000 |
| Stirling Council | £85,000 | £168,000 | £253,000 | £421,000 |
| West Dunbartonshire Council | £79,000 | £157,000 | £235,000 | £392,000 |
| West Lothian Council | £184,000 | £369,000 | £553,000 | £922,000 |
| Total | £5,000,000 | £10,000,000 | £15,000,000 | £25,000,000 |
Question 3 - How many play parks have benefited since 2021 from this support that was announced?
Local authorities have reported that a total of 887 play parks have been renewed or were in the process of being renewed as of March 2024, from a total of £20 million funding received to that date. Reports on the number of play park renewal for £15 million funding in 2024/25 are due from local authorities by the end of April 2025.
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