Residents may have lost the battle to make their Poole recreation ground a town green – but they have won the war to update it.

Work is due to start next week on £20,000 worth of improvements to the dilapidated pavilion at Branksome Rec and £40,000 of green gym equipment is expected to be installed later in the year.

Despite the three years it has taken to get improvements, Jacqui Wilson, vice-chairman of Branksome West Residents Association, who fought for a town green on the open space, finally turned down by the council last month, said their campaign had reached a “happy and successful conclusion”.

She said: “We may have lost our application for a village green but we were successful against the proposal of the Poole Town Football Club and we obviously raised sufficient awareness to the council regarding the state of the pavilion and rec.”

Cllr Phil Eades said that despite all the stress caused by the football club’s proposal to build a ground at the rec, it had ended with a positive outcome.

He said there was now “a much greater spirit of community in Branksome and a real willingness of residents to engage with their local area to a much greater extent than has been seen in the past”.

The pavilion will have new windows, cladding, fascias and doors. Fifteen pieces of equipment and a one-mile running route are proposed and 32 new trees and shrubs are being planted this month.

Clive Smith, head of leisure services at the Borough of Poole, said: “We will be delighted to see these improvements to this much-loved recreation ground and I am glad that local people have worked with us to prioritise what can be done.

“The work being done will benefit the whole community and we hope the outdoor fitness equipment will prove just as popular as that in Poole Park.”