Belair National Park

Ms HUTCHESSON (Waite) (14:41): My question is to the Minister for Climate, Environment and Water. Can the minister outline to the house the benefits of a new nature playground at Belair National Park?

The Hon. L.P. HOOD (Adelaide—Minister for Climate, Environment and Water) (14:42): I thank the member for Waite for her question and just acknowledge what an incredible advocate she is for her community, how incredibly hard she works and how she very much loves many of the community hubs in her electorate.

The Belair National Park is one of the most beloved spaces for children and families in the state, annually attracting 250,000 visitors. For generations, South Australians have enjoyed its wide open spaces and its connection to nature. Work has now started to make the Belair experience even better through the upgrade of its iconic adventure playground. The existing metal frame structure is being replaced with a new playground, improving visitor experience, decreasing safety risks and minimising ongoing maintenance.

The new playground includes three slides, a climbing rope, a pyramid, monkey bars, three swings, a rock-climbing wall and an emu rocker. It also features a range of accessible equipment to ensure children of all ages can enjoy the space. This includes play elements such as a trampoline, a nest swing, storyboards, a xylophone and a non-verbal communications board.

The playground's design includes natural colours and timber to fit the stunning natural surrounds and the new structure will be located in the middle of the picnic area and centred around the iconic existing tree. This location was selected to better align with the contours of the land to allow for better accessibility.

These works are due to be completed in time for the December school holidays and are the first stage of planned upgrades at the site. The much-loved play tunnels and fort section are remaining unchanged but have been identified for potential future upgrades. The Department for Environment and Water will engage with the community on any future upgrades to the much-loved tunnel and fort.

In addition to the playground upgrade, new toilets and a new car park are also being installed at Playford Lake. This follows last year's completion of an $800,000 upgrade to the Wood Duck Walk around the lake to improve accessibility for wheelchairs and prams. This project also included the construction of stairs, boardwalks, bridges and a viewing platform. This upgrade will help to futureproof the playground, which has been much loved for decades.

The Malinauskas Labor government is very committed to ensuring children are as active as possible. We believe exposure to the outdoors and nature play is good for their mental and physical wellbeing. It is very much one of the motivations behind our world-leading ban, first led by our Premier, of social media access for children under the age of 16. We want to see as many kids as possible off their screens, enjoying the natural environment, playing in parks with their friends and starting on a healthy lifestyle that will see them develop habits that will last a lifetime. I am very much looking forward to Belair National Park being a space in which they can do that.