Councillors asked for a safety audit in July after reports a man exposed himself to two children in Elephant Park earlier in the month and an alleged sexual assault on a child in November. 

Canobolas police conducted a risk assessment in August at Orange City Council’s request and councillors supported the recommendations in December.

Councillors and crime prevention committee chairman Jason Hamling welcomed the progress. 

“We need to make our parks safe for the community to use, not only during the day, but the early evening when it’s dark,” he said.

“It’s about being able to use these places and know you’re safe.”

He was still in support of expanding CCTV coverage and encouraged residents to look out for each other and report anything suspicious to police.

“Even if it’s a little thing, it might be part of something bigger,” he said. 

Canobolas Local Area Command crime manager Bruce Grassick said the assessment was international standard, measuring crime likelihood, consequences, hazards and crime opportunities.

“It’s crime prevention through environmental design,” he said.

“For the council to support the recommendations, that’s a positive for not only the police, but the community.”

Police assessed Elephant, Moulder and Cook parks as part of the audit. 

The audit found some areas of Elephant Park could be quite dark outside of daylight hours due to dense tree cover.

With the park regularly used as a running trial because of its leash-free dog area and outdoor fitness equipment, police recommended bollard-style lighting be installed along the gravel paths to improve visibility after hours.

In Moulder Park, the audit also found a need for extra lighting, especially around the car park, the Sale Street side of the park because the velodrome lighting was only switched on when the velodrome was in use, and along the footpath. 

However, it found the lighting was good within Cook Park and extra safety measures were not yet required. 

Council staff are costing the lighting, to be included in the 2018-19 budget.