FURIOUS town councillors are dismayed after their plans to install an outdoor gym on the Ramsey Road playing field were delayed.

A year ago Halstead Town Council highlighted improvements to the Ramsey Road playing field as a top priority, following a survey of residents.

It was decided money from developers allocated for the field would be spent on the outdoor gym and Braintree Council agreed. It was hoped work could now begin and a gym would be available soon.

However, at the same time, discussions were taking place about ownership of the playing field passing from the district to the town council, for the princely sum of £1.

The town council, amid concerns about running and maintenance costs, decided to reject ownership.

Now the district council is rejecting the survey results and, as the authority still in charge of the field, plans to carry out its own survey to make sure the gym is what people want.

This survey will not start until at least April and even if the conclusion is for an outdoor gym it will not be built for at least another year.

Town councillor Andrew Munday, speaking at Monday’s full Halstead Town Council meeting, said: “It feels farcical we are still at this stage. The money is already allocated for Ramsey Road, and our open spaces plan has been approved. They are not consulting until 2018.

"What are we waiting for, we have consulted residents and made these decisions.”

Town councillor Mick Radley added: “I have been asked about this several times by residents, and there is nothing I can say to them. We identified Ramsey Road as a priority in August, since then there has been no progress at all.”

A district council spokesman said: “We are in discussions with Halstead Town Council regarding the consultation outcomes for Ramsey Road Park which we will then look at options moving forward.”