Many of you will have already noticed that the Outdoor Classroom at the bottom of the playground has been removed. The staff and children loved the classroom and it provided shade in the summer and shelter in the winter but unfortunately the structure was very old and we made the decision to remove it before it became unsafe. We are glad we did as its removal revealed problems that were not immediately apparent. In addition to the classroom removal we have also begun to remove the old willow arch which had become overgrown and too big for the space and we have hard pruned the trees in that area. We have also emptied the pond and our intention is to re-use it as a sand-pit. Our next step is to dispose of the large pile of debris that we have created!
Although not in any way definite, in the longer term it may be possible for us to implement a more major upgrade of the playground. However, in the short term we have a small amount of funds from a variety of sources which we intend to use to improve the area where the outdoor classroom stood. The children have been asked about what they would like to see and the general feeling is that we will use some of the funds that we have available to introduce some ‘themed’ zones with associated resources such as ‘construction’, ‘wildlife’, ‘creative’, ‘music’, ‘shop/cafe’ and so on. Whatever we purchase it will need to be removable or raised off the ground and protected from winter water logging which effects that part of the playground.
The removal of the outdoor classroom has provided us with a small supply of wood which is reusable and if we can, we intend to make into tables and benches. We hope to get the children involved with their design, measurement and wherever possible and safe, with their construction also.
We will keep you posted as ideas develop into reality…please bear with us since, as with the work undertaken so far, a lot of our plans will need to be implemented by staff (in a socially distanced manner)!