SPRING has arrived and with it the hopes of dozens of school children – and possibly adults – awaiting a promised zip wire.

Councillors pledged last year to install the feature in the Marston area of Oxford by this April. Now a councillor for the area, Mick Haines, has confirmed that contractors have been appointed and are gearing up for the work, which is set to take two weeks to complete.

If all goes according plan, the councillor said, the workers will be on site as early as next week.

He said: "They are still working towards starting to build before the end of March. It depends on the weather when contractors can get started.

"Once it's all up and running, it will be fantastic for the kids."

The £5,000 piece of play equipment allows users to slide on a suspended harness. There are similar zip wires already installed at nearby parks in Northway and at Mortimer Hall recreation grounds, along with other parks across the city.

The zip wire is being paid for through contributions from the Friars Court student accommodation project, completed last year in Old Marston Road, as well as Mr Haines' own council budget.

He said that the facilities were badly needed in his part of Oxford and added: "We are behind in Marston with facilities like that and we could definitely get more.

"We could all do with some more play equipment, and better facilities, for the parks in our community."

Before the new equipment was announced, Old Marston parish council completed a survey of nearby schools, asking what children wanted for their community spaces. The top item on their wish list, according to the council, was indeed a zip wire.

Parish council vice chairman, Duncan Hatfield has said: “I think it will be a great thing for the area; a great asset. It will be fun for the children. It certainly gets a lot of use at the other ground at Northway.

“It isn’t traditional like a normal swing or slide. It is a really modern piece of equipment.”

He added: “I think that the adults enjoy going on it as well.”

Oxfordshire County Council Leader Ian Hudspeth opened Woodstock’s new play area, its first zip wire, by hurtling down a zip line in September 2014 after its town council installed the new play equipment.

In May 2015, after two years of planning, Oxford’s Herschel Crescent Recreation Ground in Littlemore was officially opened which included another zip wire ride.

Other recreational grounds have since followed suit by installing the play equipment.