THE people of Worcester have taken the idea of building a beautiful bandstand in a city park to their hearts at a fun day to promote the scheme's launch.

The Cripplegate Park Fun Day on Thursday and Saturday was for many their first opportunity to say how they really feel about building a bandstand in the park and what form they think it should take.

As previously reported the bandstand would protect musicians and performers from the sun or more inclement weather. The hope is that it will make the park more popular, allowing more events to be put on there.

A sample of bandstands from around the world were on show courtesy of a resurgent Friends of Cripplegate Park.

People let event organisers know what they thought of some of the designs with pink, heart-shaped post it notes which they placed on the board while also filling in the formal consultation documents.

Anita Marles, one of the Friends of Cripplegate Park, said: "I'm surprised how much interest there has been. This is just the launch. There will be future events."

She was joined by musician Muff Murfin, a consultant for Youthcomm Radio and also one of the Friends of Cripplegate Park.

Mr Murfin said the bandstand or pavilion had to be practical with power and disabled access and the Sons of Rest building is also to be upgraded as part of the scheme.

He said: "It's a case of 'build it and they will come'. There's a lot of interest."

So far around 200 survey forms have been filled in with a positive reaction from the community to the idea of having a bandstand in the St John’s park.

A debate is still underway about whether the style of the structure should be traditional or more modern.

Stuart Minchin, a community engagement officer for Worcester City Council, said: “I think the bandstand is going to give us an opportunity to have many more events in the park to suit all sorts of interests.

“A lot of people walk through the park but we want it to be a destination as well. We want people to be heading to Cripplegate park to enjoy events. We really need the community behind us. There’s a real appetite for this bandstand.”

The hope is the bandstand would be a multi-use performance platform which could be used by brass bands, classical musicians, pop and rock groups, drama and theatre groups, catering for a range of tastes from lovers of Elgar to lovers of Elton.

Crowds were drawn in by activities including face-painting, a carousel, an inflatable slide and a display of photos in the Sons of Rest building showing the city in the 1950s, including the aftermath of a gas explosion.

A pop-up café was set up in the park by the Repair Café which meets on the second Saturday of every month between 11am and 2pm at the STARS centre in Stanley Road, off Wylds Lane.

Volunteers were serving coffee, tea and home-made cake as they raised the profile of their café where they repair small electrical and household appliances, bikes, toys, furniture, ceramics and textiles.

Rod Howell, chairman of the cafe, and Ashley Pearce who performs repairs were there at the fun day as the the cafe prepares to celebrate its first birthday next month.

Mr Howell said: "It's sociable but also diverts items from landfill. There has been one in Malvern for four years and we were inspired by them. We repair stuff for nothing. One of the challenges is getting people to know we exist."