Children could trip on a damaged piece of playground equipment and “fall flat on their face” if nothing is done to fix it, parents fear.

A plastic pirate ship was regularly used by youngsters visiting the Herne Bay Coastal Park in Central Parade - until it was closed off for repairs several months ago.

It has since been covered in a plastic mesh by Canterbury City Council workers - which concerned mums and dads believe could get tangled around their children’s feet.

Green Party campaigner Andrew Harvey says he has missed taking his own granddaughter to play on the ship.

“She loves it,” he said.

“I have written to the council on several occasions.

“The red plastic mesh keeps on falling off, and kids are still climbing on it because they’re attracted to it. But the mesh is actually a hazard, as children could catch their feet in it, trip, twist their ankle or fall flat on their face.”

Mum-of-three Jess Brazer, who is from the town, has also been left “very angry about this”.

Residents say they have repeatedly written to councillors about the issue.

But local authority bosses stress they share locals’ frustrations as they wait for the parts they need to fix the ship to be delivered.

They also say “play areas are inspected for safety issues on a weekly basis and any repairs that are required are carried out”.

Mr Harvey added: “It’s issues like this that impact ordinary people. It’s taken far too long for this to get sorted.”

"We share residents’ frustrations about this..."

Council spokesman Rob Davies says it is inevitable the equipment in the playground is “vulnerable to vandalism” as they are “open to the elements all the time”.

He insists the repairs will be carried out “as quickly as we can” once the parts needed for the ship arrive.

“We’re sorry for the delay in fixing the ship at the seafront play area,” Mr Davies said.

“In these circumstances, we either have to remove them or prevent access to keep children safe while we arrange repairs.

“Unfortunately, we’re finding at the moment that this can be a lengthy process.

“Manufacturers can be slow and parts are invariably needed from abroad, which causes further delays.

"We share residents’ frustrations about this, but sadly the timescale for the delivery of what we need is not within our control.”