PLANS are currently being drawn up to transform a Southampton park, it has been announced.

In a video message to residents last week, Councillor Daniel Fitzhenry, leader of Southampton City Council, said that the council is in the process of working on plans to upgrade Mayflower Park.

This comes after work on the new Spitfire Memorial at the park was commissioned by the council with work set to start by April 2023.

Now the council leader says plans are being drawn up for the wider park because of how “important and significant” it is to the city.

Councillor Fitzhenry told the Echo: “We as a new council, to get Southampton moving, are committed to delivering an improved new park at Mayflower Park and we’re working on the plans currently to come up with a scheme that we can deliver in the short term.

“We want to upgrade the facilities, the availability of the park, the space, as we all know it looks tired and worn out right now.

“It’s a jewel in our crown that we want to do something with, so any proposals will be about making the park much nicer, the facilities, access to the waterfront and really making good use of it so we can be proud of it again.”

The council says it is currently working through ideas for the parks transformation but it is not yet known what the development of the area will include or how much it is going to cost.

The council leader added that they want to start making the improvements in the next year ahead of the planned development of the area as part of the Mayflower Quarter Masterplan.

He said: “We want to get on and get the park upgraded as quickly as possible, we’ve already committed to have spade in the ground for April 23 for the Spitfire so want to align the new park proposals with that so we’ve got something good into 2023.”

Civic chiefs gave their support to the Spitfire memorial at a meeting in July which is estimated to cost £5.5m in total.

The monument is aimed at recognising those who designed, built and flew the Spitfire in World War II and is said to heighten the significance of the city’s heritage both nationally and internationally.

The project, which has been the subject of conversations for years after being given planning permission in 2014, is set to be delivered by the National Spitfire Project Charity (NSPC).