Council invests in specialist equipment to improve green spaces

  Published on 12 October 2026

Welshpool Town Council has invested £10,900 in new specialist grounds maintenance machinery, helping its Operations Team tackle previously overgrown and difficult-to-access areas across the town, with the purchase funded entirely through savings within its existing budget.

The Council has purchased a Grillo Agrigarden Climber 10.27, supplied by local company Charlies AG & Turf, using an underspend from its End of Season Works budget. This has enabled the Council to invest in improving its services without requiring any additional funding from the Council Tax precept.

With responsibility for approximately 65 acres of public green space, the Council's Operations Team maintains a wide variety of areas, from recreational grounds and parks to grassland and areas of natural vegetation.

The new machine is designed to tackle challenging terrain and dense vegetation, enabling the team to cut long grass, brambles and overgrown areas that would otherwise be difficult and time-consuming to maintain using conventional equipment.

Since its introduction, the Grillo has already delivered noticeable improvements at several locations, including Maes y Dre and Burgess Lands, where areas that had previously been challenging to maintain have been brought back under active management.

The investment has enabled the Operations Team to work more efficiently, improve the appearance of public spaces and tackle areas that may otherwise have required significant manual labour or specialist contractors.

Town Clerk Richard Williams said:

"Looking after 65 acres of green space across Welshpool is a significant undertaking, particularly when some of those areas are steep, heavily overgrown or difficult to access with traditional equipment.

"This investment has already made a real difference. Our Operations Team has been able to bring areas back under control that were previously difficult and labour-intensive to maintain, and the improvements are clear to see.

"We want residents to be proud of their local green spaces, and that means ensuring they are well maintained, accessible and welcoming, whilst also recognising the importance of biodiversity and the natural environment.

"Investing in the right equipment allows our staff to work more efficiently, achieve better results and make the most of the resources available to us. We're also delighted to have purchased the machine from Charlies AG & Turf, supporting a local business in the process."

The machinery also supports the Council's wider approach to environmental management and biodiversity. By making it easier to manage different types of vegetation, the team can adopt a more targeted approach to maintenance, keeping appropriate areas tidy and accessible whilst retaining suitable habitats and areas of natural growth for wildlife.