The park, next to St James Primary School, will be transformed into a creative and imaginative play space. A cutting-edge playground will encourage children to explore the natural environment and be physically active, while tennis court and garden upgrades will provide a recreation area for young people and adults.

Lord Mayor Clover Moore said work will start early next year and is expected to be completed by 2015.

“This upgrade is the outcome of two years of extensive consultation with local residents,” the Lord Mayor said.

“Inner city residents and their children need access to beautiful and well-maintained open space and playgrounds. This upgrade will ensure St James Park offers a range of activities for children and adults alike.”

The park will be upgraded to include an additional garden with a new bottlebrush and tea tree grove plantation, recycled brick paving and stabilised gravel paths. A new open grass lawn terrace, refurbished park furniture and new lighting and signage will complete the transformation.

A barrier fence and school pupil collection area will improve safety features in the park and make it easier for parents to pick up their children.

The new adventure playground is aimed at children aged up to seven and includes a timber tree-house deck built around an existing celtis tree with a “play servery shopfront” where children can play shopkeeper. Interpretative drawings by local school children about the natural environment will be incorporated into the timber deck.

Other new play equipment will include a slide, firemen’s pole and monkey bars, a toddlers’ covered sandpit, a basket-seat swing and sandstone block stepping stones.

The tennis facilities will have improvements for people living with disabilities, including the introduction of an accessible toilet and change rooms.

The timber filigree and brick amenities building provides a sheltered seating area for tennis groups, parents and carers, and will be oriented towards the tennis courts to improve viewing.

A new PlexiPave tennis court surface, lockable kitchenette, on-court benches and on-court storage cabinets will improve the tennis-playing experience and make it easier to store personal belongings.

A new lighting upgrade will reduce light spill and improve energy consumption. Stormwater recapture for toilet flush and irrigation reuse will be added and solar panels and sustainable building materials used.

The upgrades have been informed by extensive community consultation, including on-site feedback sessions with local residents. Four rounds of consultation were undertaken, with 7,000 letters distributed in the Glebe area.

The invitation to tender for the project was open to the public from 3 September to 1 October.