BASILDON Council has begun clearing equipment from 108 play areas across the district, in a controversial bid to save thousands of pounds.

Staff from the council began dismantling the sites as they start to turn the play areas into open spaces.

Last year, the council claimed a survey of its play areas showed there were too many to maintain properly, with around 108 failing to meet decent standards and falling into disrepair.

It believes about £22,000 a year could be saved by turning them into green space and has promised to improve the remaining 151.

However, the scheme has been criticised by opposition councillors, who claim the new-found green space could later be sold by the council and developed into housing.

Removing all the equipment will cost an estimated £78,000.

At a meeting, Alan Bennett, Lee Chapel North ward councillor, asked: “Are any of these sites when they are turned back into green space likely to be targeted for sale by the administration for other purposes?”

The council said it does not have any plans to sell off any of the land and most of the 108 areas would be too small for any development.

But Kevin Blake, councillor responsible for leisure and arts, said: “You can never say never, but there has been absolutely no intention of changing these into development sites.

“Most of them are too small to build anything, but we have to go round and inspect them if they are classed as play areas, so we’re changing them to open space to make the savings.”

The meeting heard six sites had been cleared as part of the first phase with 30 play areas turned into open space by the end of March next year.

But two sites, in Wythams and Ashfields, in Pitsea, will not be changed after residents asked the council to keep them as play areas.