Play & Activity February 2020

intensifies during winter months

The Association of Play Industries (API) is once again joining forces with Leyla Preston, founder of online parenting platform Motherhood Diaries and social media influencer, to launch a new winter campaign.

The campaign highlights the need to get children outdoors and playing in playgrounds over the cold winter months.

API Chair Mark Hardy says: ‘Our Play Must Stay campaign has showed that parents are becoming increasingly concerned with the steep decline in public playgrounds.

“With the vast majority of families living in urban areas, community playgrounds are often their only chance to get their children playing outdoors and the winter months present even more challenges.

“Without access to free, local, high-quality outdoor play facilities, children can spend most of the winter cooped up indoors. The closure of hundreds of playgrounds across the UK means that the reality for many families is that children are

not even getting the minimum recommended amount of daily exercise. In the midst of a childhood obesity epidemic and rising mental health problems, we are calling on the government to urgently invest in public play provision before it’s too late.”

Leyla adds: “Last year our summer project explored how less screen time and more time spent in playgrounds impacted not only my two boys’ lives but our family as a whole. I saw a dramatic difference in their health and wellbeing. My children were happier, they slept better and their behaviour improved.

“I know that many parents are waiting for this debate to take place; so many of us know that our children are not outside enough and spend far too much time indoors and on screens, especially in winter. Parents need and deserve support to turn this around. We have wonderful playgrounds in the UK that we need to value and protect, as well as campaign for government investment in them before they disappear for good.

API

Gerflor see school success with Taraflex® Comfort

Astrea Academy is a new-build and refurbishment project in the north-east of Sheffield, which in time will become one of the city’s biggest schools taking children from nursery age up to sixth form.

With the expected levels of growth came the need for vision and future proofing for the school’s infrastructure, this included flooring for the allimportant indoor sports facilities that the academy provides for both pupils and staff alike.

The project would see Gerflor supply 550m2 of its Taraflex ® Comfort vinyl sports flooring in Teal for the academy’s sports hall, with a further 250m2 in Oak chosen for the gym area.

Being a P3 category sports floor Taraflex ® Comfort offers the highest levels of comfort and shock absorption to prevent

Winter play in playgrounds means that children escape indoor germs, benefit from the fresh air, get an essential dose of vitamin D and, of course, the chance to play, learn and let off steam.

“Playgrounds are also focal points and meeting places for communities; when children spend time excessive time indoors they are denied the social interaction so necessary for their normal development,” says Leyla. “Playing outside and making friends are the building blocks of a healthy childhood.

“Mentally and physically children benefit from playgrounds – making for happy children and happy parents! This winter campaign I’ll be exploring all the challenges parents face and engaging with parents to support the Play Must Stay campaign for playground funding.”

Major investment to help poorest children get active

Children from some of the poorest areas in England will have the chance to get physically active by trying a wider range of sports that may not have traditionally been accessible in their area.

Sport England has awarded £500,000 of National Lottery funding to UK charity Sport Inspired Open in a new window to help more than 9,000 children, young people and families live happier, healthier lives through sport.

The charity, which was set up in 2008, delivers programmes in places where children have the fewest opportunities, bringing together different parts of the community to create longerterm change.

Following one-day sports festivals – events that give young people the opportunity to try a range of activities like parkour, martial arts and fencing – regular and sustainable sports programmes are set up in schools. Mike Diaper, Sport England’s executive director of children and young people, said: “The project will focus on the communities who are most in need, working with local schools, sport clubs and community partners to provide more opportunities for local young people to access sport or physical activity.

“The focus will be on celebrating the joy of taking part. Our research shows that enjoyment above competence is the main driver in children getting and staying active.”

Sport England

Planning your new school playground

There are several factors that you will need to consider when planning for your new school playground, as the specialists at Wicksteed explain.

Before looking into play equipment for your school however it is always best to have a clear picture of the space you have available and your budget.

Play is integral for a child’s development and can improve cognitive ability and problemsolving skills. Play is also a great way to get children more creative, so the benefits of getting outdoors at break time go far beyond health and fitness!

Playing outdoors on playground equipment enables children to build essential communication that will also serve them well in the classroom.

Wicksteed offers a fantastic range of playground products that are guaranteed to liven up even the smallest of outdoor spaces. For smaller school playgrounds it’s important to maximise your space. Use of educational play panels or smaller trim trail items can add lots of play value with little need for huge amounts of space. Children can learn through play with our caterpillar counter panel or have fun in groups with the Simon Says interactive panel.

Check out the Toddler section of the Wicksteed website for more info about these products and many more.

When looking at play products for larger playgrounds it’s important to remember that you will need surfacing for any bigger pieces of equipment such as multiplay units, see-saws and swings. Wicksteed offers an array of safety surfacing types to suit any outdoor space. These include wet pour, safety grass, bonded rubber mulch and safety tiles.

For larger play areas it’s good to have a clear picture of what kind of material suits the site best. For more natural areas, timber products such as our range of timber play ships and climbers work well. For high traffic areas prone to the elements it may be best to look at some steel options like our Castle and Cloud Multi-Play ranges.

As children get older they seek to play on more challenging pieces of play equipment. Pushing the boundaries with a real sense of

adventure in your playground can make all the difference between boredom and enjoyment.

At Wicksteed we are firm believers that play should be for all. Our sensory and inclusive play products provide fun, education and challenge for children of all abilities. Sensory play is a vital ingredient in any good play area and incorporating a good mixture of textures, sounds and experiences will guarantee enjoyment for all.

Our in house UK production facility allows us to offer a range of bespoke products for your school playground. Wicksteed is the only company in the UK that can produce bespoke solutions at our manufacturing facility in the UK thanks to our new CNC Router. School names, badges and mottos are a small sample of the things we can add to our play products. Ask us more about our bespoke play product facilities.

Being a UK manufacturer means that our customers spend less time waiting and more time playing. We are one of the only play companies to offer full aftercare service to all of our customers and all parts and spares are held at our headquarters in Kettering.

Wicksteed

Creating inspiring play opportunities

Playinnovation create inspiring educational sports areas with the WOW factor! Engaging your schools and communities by developing innovative Family Inclusive sports areas. (FISA)

Working closely and successfully with pupils, Headteachers and staff of a West London School, Playinnovation designed a playground suitable for all the

needs and abilities for pupils of this successful purpose-built community special school.

Using only the highest quality materials and most exclusive equipment on the market, Playinnovation ™ created one of the most unique school playgrounds in London. Colourful, vibrant and jam packed with opportunities for

physical and mental activity, featuring Playinnovation’s new ‘Hype Courts’ Basketball goals, table tennis tables, patented educational games walls such as Street Pool, traverse walls and gym equipment from TGOGC, this space is fully set for activation.

Playinnovation

The Football Association Sutu

The second Football Association Sutu has been installed into an existing MUGA in Manchester, Platt Fields.

This Sutu was fully funded by Sport England who is working in partnership with ourselves and The FA to provide communities with free access to interactive community play spaces, promoting communities to be more active.

Within the first 16 days the Sutu was being played for up to 5 hours a day with a total of 20 hours and

Versatility of SterlingOSB Zero transforms i-Jump

i-Jump is Mansfield’s popular trampoline park frequented by great numbers of ecstatic children and their accompanying guardians.

When designing the interior, i-Jump needed to create a practical and easily managed space while still being fun. In order to achieve this, i-Jump has covered the walls using Norbord’s revered SterlingOSB Zero.

Sterling OSB Zero is a precision engineered wood panel product that is suitable for use across a great range of construction projects. It is the UK’s only manufactured OSB that doesn’t contain any added formaldehyde making this an ideal choice for somewhere like i-Jump.

Stephi Grayson iJump’s Operations Manager has described the versatility of SterlingOSB Zero as one of its most unique features.

This has allowed the company to personalise the boards by adding their own vinyls and company logos without incurring significant costs. The effect is a decorative and individual interior that isn’t just a hit with Stephi. The trampoline park’s choice to opt for SterlingOSB Zero has been met with “lots of complimentary comments” from iJump’s many visitors.

With its high adrenaline atmosphere i-Jump has benefitted greatly from the use of a material that Stephi has described as “totally self sufficient and effective”. Now that the decoration itself is completed Stephi, her colleagues and all their enthusiastic customers can simply enjoy the inviting appearance of the park without having to worry about degradation and upkeep.

Norbord

that is despite one of the wettest November’s on record! This Sutu is part of a larger scheme with The Football Association and Sport England. The first

Sutu within this scheme was installed at Lowfield Park in Sheffield.

Jupiter Play

Playrite ‘Ace it’ for Tennis Word with Matchplay 2

Tennis World have recently upgraded their playing surfaces at their state-of-the-art facility in Middlesbrough.

In the past Tennis World has served up several Wimbledon aces, now Middlesbrough’s largest independent tennis club has had its first makeover in 30 years.

In 2018 Tennis World was given a six-figure “new lease of life” with world-standard indoor and outdoor courts. Tennis World is unique in having 4 indoor and 6 outdoor courts.

The recent refurbishment would enable a brand-new suite of playing surfaces to be installed delivering both top

performance and playability. In providing new courts the choice of playing surfaces where the general public and future champions could practice and compete on would be crucial.

Tennis World would ultimately choose Yorkshire-based Playrite to supply their Matchplay 2 product to meet and surpass their stringent requirements.

Playrite

UK’s first special Cruyff Court

The opening of the first Special Cruyff Court in England took place this week at Dorothy Goodman School, Hinkley.

This Special Cruyff Court, in part developed by Sutcliffe Play, is accessible to all supporting inclusion of children and young people with disabilities.

It will enable children and young people to practise all kinds of sport and physical activities as well as have an active role in organising these activities.

Sutcliffe Play is excited to be involved with this project and it was wonderful to see so many pupils and teachers enjoying the opening, even in the rain.

Sutcliffe Play

Flexi-Sport Zones offers a variety of options

These include specific ‘exercise station’ activities (such as challenges to touch your toes, run on the spot, hop on one leg or balance on one leg, as well as to do star jumps, squats and calf lifts), goals for football, holes for golf, cricket stumps and athletics markers).

The Playforce Flexi-Sport Zone scheme is the perfect solution to meet the challenge of catering for a group of pupils with different tastes and requirements.

Flexi-Sport Zone creates a flexible sports area, perfect for PE lessons and play time. It’s specifically designed for primary school children so they can try a range of sports and activities.

It can be fitted to any space and individual panels can be chosen and fitted together in whatever formation you like, to create a space that works for all size plots of land. It’s ideal for schools without the space for a full MUGA!

Panels are double sided and different colours, as well as featuring different images and activities.

You can even include panels with crowd pictures, to cheer your young athletes on!

Flexi-Sport Zone’s is modular and flexible. Best of all, with 29 different panels, you can build your collection of panels up over time as well as switching them and rotating them to create different activities. There are hundreds of possible combinations.

Playforce