Marine Gardens playpark completed by 31 August 2024.

This playpark is now a vibrant and exciting space for children of all ages and abilities, with an impressive ship, a zipline, swings, and climbing opportunities.

Larne Skate Park completed by 31 October 2024.

Officially opened in October 2024, this park is designed to cater to all skills levels and abilities. It accommodates a range of wheeled sports, from skateboarding and BMX, to scootering and inline skating.

2 additional new or refurbished playparks completed by 31 March 2025.

A brand-new playpark has officially opened in Fisherwick Ballymena.

Developed following community consultation, the park includes senior and junior multi play units, an inclusive roundabout, swings, summer seating and an accessible picnic bench.

The Knockan Road play park was partially refurbished, and Oakfield playpark in Carrickfergus completed in May 2025.

Bardic Drive playpark is due to complete before summer.

Future updates will be provided to the Council’s Neighbourhoods and Communities Committee. 

Carnlough, Glynn and Portglenone MUGAs or kickabouts completed by 30 June 2024.

All 3 areas completed in summer 2024.

Carrickfergus Amphitheatre 2G pitch upgraded to 3G by 31 July 2024.

The pitch upgrade is complete.

Phase 1 of the Cullybackey to Galgorm Greenway completed by 30 September 2025.

The design consultants were appointed in June, and following necessary revisions to the proposed route, outline designs were approved by the project board in November 2024.

A phased delivery approach has now been agreed, with funding departments supportive of our revised plan.

The project remains under review to assess the impact of design changes on the overall timeline.

The submission of the planning application is expected by summer 2025, after which a revised completion date for Phase 1 will be confirmed.

Future updates on this project will be provided to the Council’s Environment and Economy Committee, and the Neighbourhoods and Communities Committee, as relevant.

Development of Carnfunnock Country Park completed by 31 March 2026.

Public consultation has been completed, and planning approval has been secured.

The tender process is underway, however returned tenders identified a budget shortfall.

In response, the project has undergone a detailed review to identify potential cost savings and explore opportunities for additional Council funding.

A re-profiling exercise is underway to support this, with outcomes to be presented to Elected Members and approval sought to progress to tender award stage.

It is anticipated the project will progress and a contractor will be on site during summer 2025 with a delivery period of 18 months.

The funders have extended the project window until 31 March 2027 to reflect the updated delivery timeline.

Future updates will be provided to the Council’s Environment and Economy Committee, and the Neighbourhoods and Communities Committee, as relevant.

Sound systems installed in Ballymena and Carrickfergus town centres by 30 June 2024.

It is hoped the sound systems will be in place by summer, pending the agreement of property owners.

Future updates on this project will be provided to the Council's Environment and Economy Committee.

2 street art schemes in Ballymena and Larne town centres by 31 July 2024.

A Street Art Festival in Larne and 3 murals in Ballymena have been delivered, including an abstract piece in Ballymoney Street, a giant Flamingo in Greenvale Street, and an outdoor adventurer in Church Street.

The feedback received from the public has been positive.

Feature lighting installed in Ballymena and Larne town centres by 30 September 2024.

Ballymena, Larne and Carrickfergus all received new Christmas Trees for the 2024 festive season. Gobo projectors have also been installed in Pat’s Brae Ballymena and Carrickfergus Civic Centre.

Larne will benefit from new festive lighting in 2025/26.

Additional funding application submitted to the Department for Communities by 30 September 2024.

Funding of £105,000 has been awarded for artificial Christmas trees in the 3 main towns, £315,000 for Revitalise 2 (Shop Front Grant Scheme and Marketing Campaign), £135,000 for Enhanced Seasonal lighting in each town centre and a Seasonal Lighting Trail in Carrickfergus, and almost £154,000 for a Pop-Up Park in Larne town centre.

25 groups utilising Pop-Up Shop opportunities by 31 March 2025.

The Pop-Up Shop initiative exceeded expectations, with 31 community groups and entrepreneurs making use of available spaces. Several events were also held in the properties throughout the year.

15 events or activities held within Ballymena, Carrickfergus, and Larne town centres by 31 March 2025.

A total of 50 events and activities have been delivered to encourage town centre footfall and support our local businesses, including festive events, markets, craft fairs, and more.

10 buildings of historical and architectural interest restored in Carrickfergus by 31 July 2024.

With the final property completing in January, 10 buildings have now been restored to the highest of conservation standards.

Increased floor space for retail, commercial or residential use in Carrickfergus by 31 July 2024.

There were 12 residential properties and 2 derelict buildings restored, an increase of almost 900 square feet, nearly 2.5 times the original footage.

A historic exhibition space was also created.

Closing event and publication issued on the Carrickfergus Townscape Heritage Initiative by 31 July 2024.

A celebration event was held in the Dobbins Inn in November, where a booklet telling the story of the initiative was shared.

Neighbourhood Tourism Scheme launched by 31 October 2024.

The Neighbourhood Tourism Scheme was successfully launched, enhancing visitor experiences in Gracehill, Cullybackey, Broughshane, Carnlough, and Whitehead through the installation of branded visitor information stands, digital marketing materials, and interactive iPads.

3 local Neighbourhood Tourism participants by 31 March 2025.

The Old School House Gracehill, The Hub Cullybackey, Broughshane House Broughshane,

The Heritage Hub Carnlough, and the Whitehead Centre are all participating in the initiative.

A processing time for major planning applications within an average of 30 weeks by 31 March 2025.

Between April and December 2024, our average (median) processing time for major planning applications was 53.6 weeks.

This is an improvement on the same period last year, at 67.4 weeks, but remains above both the statutory target of 30 weeks and the Northern Ireland average of 39.7 weeks, and places us in a position where further improvement is required.

Within the reporting period we processed 8 major planning applications to a conclusion.

Of these, only 1 was decided within the statutory timeframe.

The difficulty in meeting the target is an issue that affects Northern Ireland as a whole, and is not exclusive to us.

Our processing time reflects a combination of stakeholder delays and particularly complex applications, set within the context of a relatively new two-tier planning system.

We are actively exploring a range of measures to improve performance and address challenges impacting our ability to meet this target.

One option currently being progressed is the implementation of a Planning Application Validation Checklist, in line with legislative changes introduced by the Department for Infrastructure.

The purpose of the checklist will be to clearly set out the specific information and supporting documentation required for different types of planning applications, helping to reduce delays caused by poor quality or incomplete submissions.

By ensuring applications are valid and complete at the point of submission, the checklist will support more efficient processing, quicker consultee responses, and improved decision-making times.

We are now in the final stages of developing our draft checklist which we hope to finalise and publish in the coming months.

Verified data up to the end of March 2025 is not yet available for all 3 statutory Planning indicators, and will be reported through our Performance Improvement Plan for 2025/26.

A processing time for local planning applications within an average of 15 weeks by 31 March 2025.

Between April and December 2024, we decided 476 local applications with an average (median) processing time of 6.2 weeks, with 82% of cases processed within the target 15 weeks, placing us as the top performing council for this measure.

The average processing time across all NI councils was 19.2 weeks, with 42% of cases processed within the target 15 weeks.

At least 70% of enforcement cases concluded within 39 weeks by 31 March 2025.

Between April and December 2024, we concluded 120 enforcement cases, 82.5% of which were concluded within the target 39 weeks.

The average across all NI councils for this period was 70.3%.