A campaign to get a grant to renovate a village playground has been backed by North East Herts MP Sir Oliver Heald.

Thanks to a plug in The Crow last week, Barley Playground has jumped up several places from 21st place to sixth in line for a £25,000 grant, but the team need to be in the top four in order to claim the much needed funding.

Sir Oliver said:“It is great news that Barley playground has been short-listed for this grant.

“I strongly encourage all of my constituents to vote for the project so that children in the village will be able to enjoy a safe play experience.

“Barley is a lovely village in the constituency and it would be great if children were able to play safely whilst being usefully diverted as well.”

The grant will be decided by public vote and people have until Monday 29 to back the playground for the OneFamily grant. More than 400 people have already voted in support.

The grant would allow the rundown playground to be resurfaced and new play equipment to be installed.

Lucy Ridgway, a member Barley Playground Refurbishment Committee, said: “We are really grateful to people who have voted so far.

“The playground means a huge amount for the community as the equipment is very old.

“We live in a small village where there is not a huge amount to do.

“There are a lot of young families in the village and it’s somewhere for the children to go. We really need that extra push to get into the top four.”

To vote, go to https://foundation.onefamily.com/projects/barley-playground-refurbishment/

, click on ‘vote for this project’. Click on register, then choose ‘sign up with email’.

On the registration page all the fields need to be filled in but just put a few random characters in the display name.

Once registered you will receive an email. Click on the link. Once there click on community projects and then in the search field put ‘Barley’.

The OneFamily Foundation is designed to provide funding for community projects which will benefit the local people.

Alternatively, you can vote via the Barley Playground Refurbishment Committee Facebook page.