Dear Madam, - You recently printed a story in August 2014 regarding the removal of a slide in the play park in Old Rossorry due to it being unsafe and where the children had expressed their disappointed that is now gone. My wife and I would like to highlight to your readers that we feel the removal of the slide has now made this area of the park dangerous after our son who is 5 years old sustained head injuries after a fall in that area of the park in April of this year.

We were visiting relatives over the Easter break and decided to bring our three children to the play park so they could enjoy an afternoon playing on the swings etc. - in hindsight we wish we hadn’t. Not long after we arrived our son made his way over to what used to be the slide area and this is where he sustained a fall which resulted in us having to attend A&E in The South West Acute Hospital.

As shown within the photographs you printed the once slide is now a very steep paved concrete area which is not a safe environment for children. As with most modern play parks they are now covered with a sponge or rubber material but this part is purely concrete and anyone to take a fall, not least a child, is most certainly going to sustain injuries.

We feel that the aforementioned play park is in an unacceptable condition for children. We did contact the local council regarding the matter to ask them what they planned to do with the area as it was unsafe, to which we received a reply stating that it applied to EU standards and it was inspected on a regular basis so nothing further would be done. We feel that this is unsatisfactory. It is only a matter of time before another child falls and could sustain even more serious injuries then our son. The council also implied that our son should have been supervised which we, as parents, took great offence - what do they feel is appropriate supervision of a child in a play park?

We feel by writing this letter other people may have the same opinion or have similar experience (hopefully not) and all my wife and I ask of Fermanagh District Council is that the concrete area be removed entirely so others do not have to endure what our son and we as a family went through.

Yours faithfully, A very disappointed visitor to Co Fermanagh.