A NEW play area was officially opened yesterday with a pumpkin party and Halloween celebration.

Residents of Wichelstowe have been waiting for several years for the new play area to open.

Dozens of pumpkins were brought in for youngsters to carve with their parents and then later in the evening when it was dark they were lit at a fancy dress party.

The play area has two parts for different age groups, a multi-games area, landscaping and various other features in the design.

Ali Boulton, of the Stowaway Community Group, said: “Residents have been waiting for this park to open for years so it is great to be at this stage.

“It has actually been open for several weeks and it is always busy no matter what the weather. There have been lots of people involved in setting up today. There’s a great community spirit here and people love living here – you can tell that by how many people have come to this event.”

As well as the pumpkin carving there were a number of activities for the children, such as an obstacle course and story reading.

Coun Nadine Watts (Lab, Old Town) said: “It is good to see a traditional event being held in the new park which everyone has been waiting for.”

Also taking part in the Halloween celebrations were staff at Specsavers in Regent Street, who dressed up as scary characters for the day. On top of that there was face painting for any children who visited the store. The aim of the day was to raise money for Wiltshire Sight, formerly the Wiltshire Blind Association.

David Grieves, store director at Specsavers Swindon, said: “We thought it would be a good opportunity to have some fun with our customers while raising money for a great cause.

“We have supported Wiltshire Sight for some time now, and some of the team will be taking part in a skydive to raise further funds for the charity so we wanted to get behind them with this event and support them in reaching their fundraising target.”