Thank you to everyone who provided feedback on the Maleela Reserve playground renewal.

The draft playground concept, developed using your feedback from stage 1 engagement, was shared on Shaping Banyule from 10-30 November 2025. We asked for feedback to learn what the community liked about the design and what could be improved. During this time, 233 people viewed the project page and three people left comments. They told us:

• They want better access and landscaping eg. continuous paved paths, more shade and improved grass quality.
• They want more unique play equipment eg. sand play, in-ground trampolines and obstacle play features
• They have concerns that the design proposed might not suit older children or feel too similar to nearby playgrounds.

The site is classified as a pocket park, which is generally used for short visits by nearby residents and typically contains limited facilities and small scale play equipment. Because of this and limited budget, we can't include large or specialised play items or shade sails. Instead, we can plant more trees to provide natural shade.

The final design aims to give children of different ages a mix of fun play options, while also improving access and landscaping to suit the role of this pocket park.

View the full findings report.

Construction on the new playground will start in April/May 2026.

View below what the community told us during Stage 2 community engagement

Thank you to everyone who shared their local knowledge and ideas for the playground at Maleela Reserve.

44 people shared their local knowledge from 25 August 2025 to 12 September 2025:

• 18 people completed an online survey
• 14 people dropped a pin on a map to share how they use the space
• 7 adults and 5 teenagers attended a pop-up conversation at the playground on 6 September 2025

We heard that the reserve is a valued and a well-used community space.

View the Findings Report Summary.

Your favourite things about the park:

Key focus areas

You highlighted three key focus areas for improvement:

• A bigger and better playground to cater to a broader age range.
• More furniture
• Improved lawn area

View below what the community told us during Stage 1 community engagement

Maleela Reserve Playground is a pocket playground in Rosanna. It is on Maleela Grove and connects to Jones Crescent. We plan to upgrade the playground in 2026 and want your ideas now to help design the new space.

Right now, the playground has a swing set and a small play unit and sits on open grass area with new shade trees planted around it.

Because it is a small pocket playground, the upgrade will include one or two play pieces and will be designed for local children. It mainly serves families within a 400-metre walk.

For open space classifications refer to the Parks and Open Spaces homepage.

Thank you to everyone who shared their local knowledge and ideas for the playground renewal. Construction to start soon!

The draft playground concept reflects local knowledge and ideas shared with us during Stage 1 engagement in mid-2025. Your feedback told us that Maleela Reserve playground is important and well used by the community.

View 'what we heard' during Stage 1 community engagement below.

Proposed design

The playground renewal aims to provide a place for local community to play and gather as a community. The draft playground's concept’s main elements are:

1. Play for a variety of ages, including:

1.1 Play unit including two slides, monkey bars and climbing elements
1.2 Swingset
1.3 Rocker
1.4 Natureplay and garden beds with native planting

2. New path connection

3. Garden beds

4. Picnic tables

Please note: The numbers for the key features match the numbers shown on the draft playground plan below.