CAN I inform the children of Bank Top, Blackburn, when they will get a long-awaited playground - not a £5,000 loo, just a playground.

The answer is: they will not.

The reply I got from Andrew McHugh, environmental health manager, at Blackburn Council said: "At the moment the department is carrying out a review of all the 62 urban play areas for which it has responsibility.

"The aim of the exercise will be to prioritise the refurbishment programme for existing play areas across the borough over the next few years.

Until this review has been completed, I am unfortunately not in a position to advise you on whether or not additional 'new' play areas will be built in the Bank Top area."

Bank Top is bottom of the pile and, according to this, is likely to stay there.

SAM SPENCE, Ribblesdale Place, Blackburn.

Converted for the new archive on 14 July 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.