Dumfries and Galloway Council is set to agree investment spending of up to £1.4 million for this year's Land Asset Class Capital Programme.

The local authority will meet later this year to discuss spending in the area.

Features include:

• £500,000 spent on developing inclusive play park areas throughout Dumfries and Galloway. Work is already taking place at parks in Stranraer, Dumfries and Annan.

• £250,000 allocated to advance the future provision of burial grounds. This fund will be specifically spent on the new Dumfries Cemetery. Further funding will be allocated to improving other cemeteries across the region, including Morton, Langholm, St Michael's and Twynholm. However, this work will relate to anything from extensive draining being carried out costing up to £50,000 to walls being repaired and rebuilt costing just over £1,000.


• Play areas in Stranraer, Port Logan and Newton Stewart will receive upgrades, as will parks in Lockerbie, Castle Douglas and in various locations across the Nithsdale Area. In addition, a £69,000 play park drainage improvement project is due to be completed by the end of Summer this year.

Chairman of the Communities Committee, Cllr Andy Ferguson, said: "I welcome this report and am pleased to read of the significant funding and work that our Council is putting in place to improve cemeteries, play parks and other public areas right across our region. From play areas in Port Logan to cemeteries in Langholm, we are committing the finance to improve the long term sustainability of our public areas.

"This is an important report for Members to consider at what is the first meeting of the Committee since the May election and I would hope that my fellow Members will agree to this major financial investment and allow officers to progress with the various strands of work contained within the report."

(LM/MH)