Children were unable to use King George Recreation Ground’s splash park in Bushey when it failed to reopen as planned over the weekend as temperatures soared. 

Herstmere Borough Council confirmed that it could not reopen when it was supposed to on Saturday, June 10 due to the chlorine dosing unit not giving accurate readings.

The council said a new unit should be fitted this week but could not confirm when the splash park will be open.

It also closed last year in July and August due to technical faults.

Now, Liberal Democrat councillors have suggested the splash park is fully re-equipped or it's reconverted back to a paddling pool.

Maxie Allen, Lib Dem councillor for Bushey Park, said he believed council officers have worked hard to try and solve the problem, but “enough is enough”.

“We can’t go on like this, letting down Bushey’s children and families with eternal promises of a splash park which never opens.”

The council’s head of street scene, Ian Kershaw, said sorry for the popular facility not being open.

He explained the decision to convert the paddling pool into a splash park was made in “good faith” but “in hindsight this may not have been the best course of action as, over the years, we’ve had to make a series of running repairs”.

Last year an overhaul of the system was conducted, and parts were replaced, which were then tested and running at the time.

However, when tests were carried out at the start of this summer season an issue with the chlorine dosing unit was found.

Mr Kershaw said: “We will never take risks with the safe running of our equipment and will not open the splash park unless we are absolutely satisfied on such issues."

Some people took to Facebook as they were unhappy with the current situation.

One person said: “We’ve got approx 9 other months of the year for them to have sorted this.”

While another raged: “Cheap fixes turn out to cost more in the long run and disappoint everyone when they fail.” 

The council said it is concentrating on an immediate fix and will then conclude a fuller review to determine the longer-term future of the facility.