The Brief: To transform their cramped 10 metre long corridor-like playground, squeezed between Menston Library and the local bowling green. Used as a local thoroughfare as well as a play area, it had an uneven surface and no fixed outdoor play facilities. Following active fundraising, Menston Pre-school raised a budget of £8,000 for the playground’s redevelopment.

“With the increasing emphasis on outdoor play and healthy living, we knew we had to do something with our cramped play area.”//Heather Norrys – Menston Pre-school Manager

The project brief was to:

• Secure the area but maintain it as a thoroughfare when not in use
• Provide facilities for painting and drawing
• Provide somewhere for the children to dig
• Maintain a small garden area
• Resurface the area

The Proposal: Recommended by other local nursery schools and with imaginative designs and an indepth knowledge of how children play, Outdoor & Play were selected for the project. They quickly identified their client’s requirements and came up with an exciting proposal.

Lynne Roberts of Outdoor & Play outlines the thinking behind their designs:“It was a bleak, untidy and uneven thoroughfare. But it did have an attractive outlook out over the bowling green, which we were keen to retain. Our design centred on creating space in which the children could do their own thing, like digging in the soil. At pre-school age, it is less about complicated equipment and more about stimulating imaginative play.”

The Job: Outdoor & Play’s proposal was quickly approved, and they got to work on transforming the playground with the following:

• An attractive wooden perimeter fencing supporting a number of play features including paint pots and swivel dice, but also allowing children to see the bowling green beyond.
• A painting and drawing area featuring an easel and chalkboard, enclosed with a small hatch to allow imaginative play.
• A digging box doubling as a playing surface when shut.
• A Pergola with seating, play area, stage and growing frame, combining to act as a focal point.
• Area resurfaced and public access to the thoroughfare maintained.

As well as exciting and inspiring the children, the work attracted the attention of the media, with articles about it in two local newspapers. Menston Pre-school were delighted and their Manager, Heather Norrys said:

“Outdoor & Play have transformed the area into an attractive and safe playground with many play features. They have also added many additional features not included in the original brief such as hooks above head height to enable a curtain to be hung, creating a stage area for the children.”//Heather Norrys – Menston Pre-school Manager