Pledge on amusement site

Shipleys amusement site in Bridge Street, Stourport, was sold earlier this month to the Blasmere company, run by famous showman Henry Danter.

Mr Danter bought the 45-year-old site on the riverside for an undisclosed fee. Mr Danter is the owner of the Symonds Yat Leisure Park near Ross-on-Wye, where he has worked for 40 years.

He has built up a successful amusement and leisure complex on the banks of the River Wye which is very popular with the public.

Mr Danter has moved four of his staff from the Symonds Yat site to Stourport to run the business.

Staff have been busy repairing and replacing arcade machines and preparing for the forthcoming Easter holidays.

The company plans to expand the site in the coming months with more children's and adults' rides including a small rollercoaster and a waltzer ride.

There are also plans for a new toilet block and hot-food stalls.

Shipleys submitted ambitious £1million plans to expand and refurbish the site in November but the plans were withdrawn in February prior to the sale of the site.

Shipleys staff are believed to have been offered jobs elsewhere in the company which also runs bingo halls in the region.

Mr Danter has appointed Paul Dorey as the general manager of the Stourport site, which will be called Riverside Amusements.

Mr Dorey said: "It is a very exciting time for the company, and we are very pleased to come to Stourport. We plan to make the site bigger and better than before and keep the tourists coming into the town.

"The site was in need of a bit of updating, and we plan to spruce the place up and bring in some new rides.

"Hopefully we can offer a few more jobs, both permanent and full-time, in the coming months to cope with demand and expansion.

"It's a great site for us, and we have the experience and expertise to ensure the business goes from strength to strength."

No-one was available to comment from Shipleys.