IAN HART Worthing is doing it for the kids

CONGRATULATIONS to all concerned for the creation of the new children’s play area almost opposite Marine Gardens, which is due to open at the end of this month.

Despite opposition from one particular councillor, who has the longstanding opinion that Worthing is a town by the sea rather than a seaside town and who adopted a classic “not in my back yard” stance in order to scupper the project, the drive and vision of others on the council means commonsense has prevailed and the local authority certainly should take the plaudits as they provide another valuable new amenity for community.

Even more so because the impressive equipment all comes at a cost of nothing to the local council tax payer, as the project is grant funded.

Like I said, a real positive, although I would add it still would have been better placed in at the original location, next to Sea Lane Café, but I think councillor Nimby won the day on that one.

Hopefully, next on the horizon will be progress on the reappearance of local amateur boxing club in Worthing, which would be another case of the important investment in local youngsters.

Adur Boxing Club faces losing its gym in Shoreham, and met earlier this year with council leader Paul Yallop with a view to getting help with a new HQ in Worthing.

Tom Wye, along with East Worthing and Shoreham MP Tim Loughton, government minister for children, is now involved, so, hopefully, things will move in the right direction.

The other week, I went along with Harty Junior to a careers fair at Worthing High School.

All credit to the school for putting on this important event and it was good to see a number of local companies send representatives.

Among the potential employers, there were HSBC, Bennett Griffin, Synergie Hair Studios and Bo-Q florists.

It is a very different situation when I left in school in 1980, and back then the job market was a totally different place.

There were opportunities, and I can think off the top of my head of several local and nationally companies that would actively recruit local youngsters back then, who now simply don’t exist or don’t have the same policy.

Back to the present and I have to say I was a little disappointed by the turn-out, not by the youngsters – the hall was packed with both Worthing High and pupils from other schools, but by some of the existing employers in the town.

Like the playground and the boxing club, investing in our local youngsters is the key – without it, Worthing could end up with long-term problems.

And while on the subject of problems, thank you very much to the individual who ran a key down the side of my car when it was parked in Warwick Gardens the other night.

I’m obviously not the first or the last person this has happened to, but it must have taken a lot of thought and imagination and I’m sure the person went to sleep that night more contented than when he or she woke up.