A new picnic bench has been installed in the play area in Victoria Park, created from timber salvaged from a well-loved 140-year-old tree, which had to be felled in May 2025 after a serious fungal condition rendered it unsafe. Some of the timber has already been made into a nature-themed bench by specialist woodworker Graham Derham, unveiled in September last year. The new bench has been handcrafted by town council ranger Mike Wright, providing a sociable space for picnicking in the younger children’s play area and continuing the life of the Norway Maple, close to its original position.
Cllr Mark Dorrington said “Mike is an extremely clever chap – this is a really beautiful piece of work and we’re looking forward to seeing the bench in use for years to come. The size and scale of it is a reminder of, and a tribute to, the tree it came from. We’re lucky that the infection that made it necessary to fell the tree didn’t prevent us from safely using the wood; so now it lives on in these two fantastic pieces – and we’ve planted a new Norway Maple, too.”
Find the new bench in the play area in Victoria Park, next to the bowling green.
