Why are we proposing to upgrade Banyan Reserve?

We’re proposing to upgrade Banyan Reserve to include a new play space and BMX pump track to support the growing recreational needs of young families in Carrum Downs and Skye. This project will be delivered through a Council and Victorian Government partnership.

The proposed upgrades will support many of Council’s existing strategies including the Play Strategy 2021, Frankston Open Space Strategy 2016 and our Skate and BMX Strategy, which is in its final stages.

Our ideas propose to transform Banyan Reserve into a key community asset, to bring everyone together in a fun, welcoming and comfortable environment. The new play and pump track will create a premier destination in Carrum Downs that encourages visitors and provides greater access and amenity.

Our vision and ideas for Banyan Reserve

We have prepared an Ideas Plan that seeks to enhance the outdoor play and social opportunities for the local Skye and Carrum Downs communities. Our vision is to transform Banyan Reserve into a vibrant and accessible community space for all ages, abilities and interests.

We've summarised our proposed upgrades below, and more detail is available by clicking the markers in our Ideas Map.

Share your feedback and ideas by completing our survey by 11.59pm 13 April 2025. We also invite you to join our pop up at Banyan Reserve on Tuesday 18 March, 3-6pm.

Who participated?

There were 227 contributions to the engagement activity. Of these 48 were online responses and 179 were through in person engagement.

Where do you live?

We asked participants where they live. The most selected option was Carrum Downs with a strong majority of participants selecting this option. (134)

What best describes your gender

Of participants who responded with their gender, 95 participants identified as women, 79 as men and 2 as another gender.

What is your age

This project aimed to reach children aged 5-11 and young people aged 12 to 17 as identified users of the playspace and pump track. Responses were collected from 134 people in the target age range, with 62 responses from other age groups. 34 Participants did not provide their age.

Which of the following do you identify with?

When undertaking community engagement, we ask participants if they identify with some communities of interest. This helps us understand the interest and impact of each project across our diverse community.

For this project, Carrum Downs has a greater number of households who speak a language other than English at home (20.5%) compared with the wider City of Frankston (11%). This can be seen in the results from this engagement activity where 22% of participants said they spoke a language other than English.

What is your interest in this project?

When asked what participants' interest was in the project, the most common response was living near Banyan Reserve (146), followed by having a 5 to 11 year old in their household (120)

How do you normally travel to Banyan Reserve?

When asked how participants usually travelled to Banyan Reserve, the most common option selected was walking (84) followed by car travel (56).

Engagement Results

Throughout this section, where you see a number in brackets it refers to the number of times something was mentioned or selected. For example, Participants referenced the lake (45) and birdlife (13). Means that there were 45 mentions of the lake and 13 about birdlife.

What themes would you like to see use throughout the playspace upgrade?

The most supported theme was "Nature and Bushland - Referencing the treed environment and local ecology" with 80 participants selecting this as their top choice. This was followed by the theme "Carrum Downs colourful community theme – bright playful, contemporary and abstract."

Other theme suggestions

Of those who suggested a theme that could apply to the entire play and pump track space, suggestions included:

• Combining themes 1 and 5
• Combining themes 1, 2 and 3
• Rainbow theme
• Giant strawberry
• Teletubbies
• Big and fun
• Lebron James / basketball
• Cryptic nature detective theme
• Cops and robbers

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What type of ADVENTURE play would you like to see at Banyan Reserve playspace?

When prioritising adventure play, the most supported option was "Swings - Basket swing/ inclusive swings with handles and high back / traditional swings" which was the highest priority for 100 participants. This was followed by "Climbing – Ropes / nets / structures" as the second most supported option.

When asking "Are there any other types of play experiences you would like to see at Banyan Reserve playspace", participants used this free text question to re-state their support for the elements mentioned in this question, particularly swings (14) and slides (10).

Also suggested for adventure play was a flying fox or zipline (13)

What type of SENSORY play would you like to see at Banyan Reserve playspace?

When prioritising sensory play, the most supported option was "Water play (e.g. hand pump and gates, creek bed with stones)" which was the highest priority for 69 participants. The second most supported option was "Sound play (e.g. music panels, interactive sound)"

When asking "Are there any other types of play experiences you would like to see at Banyan Reserve playspace", participants used this free text question to re-state their support for the elements mentioned in this question, particularly water (7). This question was also used to request that slides not be made from metal (4)

Are there any other types of play experiences you would like to see at Banyan Reserve playspace?

In addition to the proposed play experiences shown in the engagement activity, the following features and play experiences were also suggested. Suggestions not included earlier in the survey and raised by more than one participant are listed below:

• Oval or Court for ball games (14) with basketball most supported (9)
• Flying fox / zipline (13)
• Toilet (5)
• Parkour (4)
• Fenced; lights; shade stomp all mentioned 3 times each
• Obstacles; jumps; futsal; volleyball; trees, spider web all mentioned twice each.

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Do you have any feedback or questions about the design of the pump track and scooter loop?

Participants had an opportunity to provide ask a question or provide feedback about the design of the pump track and scooted loop. Some highlights from this feedback are:

• Requesting features to better support bike and BMX use (27)
• Comments about safe track surface (15) including requests to avoid concrete (9)
• Requesting ramps (11)
• Requests for more or more challenging jumps and bumps (13)

What are your priorities for possible future upgrades, in addition to the playspace and pump track?

When asked about future upgrades, the most supported option was "shelter with accessible picnic tables and BBQ" with 96 participants ranking this as their top priority. This was closely followed by "public toilet".

Do you have another priority for a possible future upgrade to Banyan Reserve?

We asked if participants had another priority for the reserve, not already mentioned on the survey. Priorities that were mentioned by 2 or more participants are shown below:

• Upgrade toilets including mentions of MLAK, baby and young child facilities (5)
• Improved shade or shelter (4)
• Crossing or bridge over the water basin (3)
• Drainage improvements, particularly to maintain oval condition (3)
• Improved path connections through the reserve (3)
• Play equipment for older children (2)
• Outdoor exercise equipment (2)
• Additional car parking (2)
• Additional rubbish bins (2)
• Separation between dogs and playspace (2)

Do you agree with the proposed location for a possible public toilet location?

When asked how they felt about the proposed location for a possible future public toilet, 139 participants agreed with the location while 7 disagreed and 37 were unsure.

Those who disagreed were prompted to suggest an alternative location. Three participants provided a response:

• "Upgrade the pavilion and integrate public toilet facilities with the build - like what you have done at other reserves."
• "Toilets should be closer to the pavilion"
• "There is already a toilet block there but it is locked."