Council to upgrade sports facilities with outdoor lights

Outdoor lights look set to be among the improvements made to public sports and leisure facilities in Craigavon, Northern Ireland.

A funding package of £2.5 million had previously been set aside for development projects at the Killicomaine and Brownstown community centres.

The borough council has now agreed to invest an additional £720,000 in the work, the Portadown Times reports.

Both buildings will see their layouts significantly revamped, with three new meeting rooms installed at the Brownstown centre.

At Killicomaine, the additional money will be used to create an outdoor Multi Use Games Area.

Councillor Carla Lockhart, chair of the development committee at Craigavon Borough Council, suggested that outdoor lights will bring a major improvement to the centres.

"There has been no significant investment in either of these two centres and part of the additional funding will see age old problems such as flat roofs, insufficient car parking and poor lighting become a thing of the past," she commented.

According to the newspaper, work is set to begin in the autumn and should take about 12 months to complete.

For people planning to add outdoor lights to their own property, the installation of such features can help to make a home more secure.

A recent article in the Portsmouth News advised people to make sure their houses are not vulnerable to thieves, after it emerged that the number of break-ins rose by 3.6 per cent in the area last year.

Installing outdoor security lights was one of the actions recommended by the newspaper, as burglars are likely to think again if they are "suddenly lit up like a Christmas tree" as they approach the house.

Lighting can also be used to make it look like people are inside even when a property is empty, which is another potential way to deter burglars.