A riverside park has been renamed after councillors spent more than £6,000 on a metal sign.

Ashford Borough Council says installing the post next to its base in Tannery Lane is "quite symbolic" as the coronavirus lockdown measures begin to ease.

Authority bosses have changed the name of the open space from North Park to Civic Park as part of plans to upgrade the area.

The sign - which was commissioned in the autumn and took several months to construct - cost £6,300 and was installed on Monday.

Chiefs say it was paid for out of last year’s council budget "by reducing spend in other areas".

Last month, ABC paused work on its multi-million pound projects after lockdown left a £4.5m gap in its 2020/21 finances.

The sign has at least a 50-year lifespan and bosses say it is effectively rust-proof, featuring the ABC motto 'with stronger faith' on both sides.

Council leader Gerry Clarkson (Con) said: "To raise the sign now, as we start to see lockdown lifted and venture into a period of social and economic recovery ‘with stronger faith’, is quite symbolic.

"The installation of the sign is the culmination of a major project to improve and upgrade this park, and to provide an enhanced amenity for our residents.”

The sign - which sits on an oak post - arrived at ABC's Aspire Landscape Management depot at the start of the year but it was far too wet to install.

A spokesman added: "The sign is conservatively anticipated to last at least 50 years, and by investing in such a high quality product, savings are expected to be made in the long term on replacement and maintenance.

"The forecasted lifespan of the sign means this impressive structure will have virtually no maintenance costs and represents excellent value for money."

ABC says its installation is part of improvement works in the park, which have already seen liquidambar trees and wild flower bulbs planted by the riverbank.

In 2018, a civic beacon remembering the heroics of the town’s soldiers was unveiled in the park.

Featuring a railway-inspired design, the torch is inscribed with Richard Lovelace’s poem ‘To Lucasta, Going to the Warres’, the origin of Ashford’s ‘with stronger faith’ motto.

At the unveiling in 2018, Cllr Clarkson said: “There are beacons in many of our villages and parishes, but there has not been a civic beacon in Ashford itself and in my view this has been long overdue.

“Ashford’s new memorial civic beacon is unique in so many ways.

“Not only is it a work of art in its own right, but it also recognises the borough’s history and heritage in a dignified manner and honours a local man who played, and continues, to play, such a key role in Ashford’s history.”

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