During 2016 we have completed just over 1000 playground developments all across mainland UK!
Each and every project we have worked on has been a pleasure and we hope we complete even more in 2017.
In light of this, we have chosen 5 of some of the great transformations completed this year, to which we can tell you, was VERY difficult!
So, here it goes the TOP 5 Playground’s by Creative Play in 2016!
The Howard Junior School
The Howard Junior School were looking to develop a vast outdoor play area and had contacted Creative Play in regards to designing, manufacturing and installing their brand new playground! They were undergoing a huge development project throughout the school and we were extremely excited to be involved.
The school were looking to develop an area for KS2. The area was large and they wanted to encourage imaginative, social and physical play. Initially The Howard Junior School wanted to incorporate our Pirate Ship, a Trim Trail circuit and a Multi-Use Games Area as well as safety surfacing at their site. However as this was such a big project the school decided to split the playground development into 4 different phases – starting with our impressive Pirate Ship!
Our Pirate Ship was chosen by the school to incorporate and cover a wide variety of play aspects as well as allow large groups of pupils to play together. To go along with the ship we incorporated blue and yellow Wetpour Safety Surfacing to give the appearance of sea and sand. This looks really effective and enhances the imaginative play aspects of the design brief. These colours also match the school’s crest which is great!
The installation went very smoothly and there was a lot of fantastic interaction between Creative Play and The Howard Junior School. The Pirate Ship has been extremely popular and has even featured on ITV Anglia!
We have had some great pictures of the children dressed up and playing on the Pirate Ship which makes us really proud to have been able to offer this to The Howard Junior School.
We are excited to continue working with the school on their additional playground phases in the coming months and completely regenerating their outdoor play space!
Langley Primary School
Langley Primary School contacted Creative Play looking to completely revamp their reception and nursery areas including ripping out existing equipment and surfacing that was already in place. The School wanted to incorporate both new equipment and surfacing with the possibility of having a roadway design within the surfacing!
After our initial consultation on site, the design team began to prepare the drawings and detailed proposal.
Langley Primary School had decided to go with a varied range of EYFS playground equipment including a Mound Tunnel, Timber Sandbox, Timber Cabin and Timber Bridge to really promote explorative play.
We also included EYFS-appropriate trim trail items to encourage physical play. Popular sensory items such as our Mud Kitchen Mini and Water Wall were also added. A thermoplastic roadway with zebra crossing was installed in an additional play area to promote role play via kinaesthetic learning.
Artificial Grass Safety Surfacing was also installed in the main play space to provide a great, all-weather surface for the younger children. Overall the equipment and surfacing installed really transformed the existing playground at Langley Primary School.
Langley Primary School was a huge project and one we are very proud of. We created a whole new play area in a short amount of time, one which provides a wide range of equipment for children to have heaps of fun and develop key skills.
The whole project was completed efficiently and the school are extremely happy with the final project!
Lacey Green Academy
Lacey Green Academy contacted Creative Play looking to develop their KS2 area, currently installed was tired and dull Trim Trail items. The academy were looking for a new, updated Trim Trail area to freshen up the playground and wanted to have safety surfacing to allow all weather use.
After meeting with Lacey Green they were interested in the look of our Zenith Max Tower Systems! In addition to this they wanted to include different ‘stations’ of Trim Trail items. The Academy really wanted to include play equipment that would cover all fundamental movement skills. After much consideration, and going over the designs Creative Play had put together, it was decided they would go with our Fort Riley Tower System in a bespoke rustic style as well as various items from our Challenger Trim Trail range.
Lacey Green Academy also had seating incorporated into the play area including our Teachers Storytelling Chair, Curved Modular Seating and Mushroom Seats. From the original meeting the Academy were sure they wanted Wetpour safety surfacing with creative inlaid designs to help brighten up the new play area and create the individual ‘stations’ around each piece of equipment.
After seeing the designs for this project I knew this was going to be challenging but we were looking forward to the final result. Preparation was key with this project and involved extensive groundworks to ensure a suitable sub-base was in place for the new equipment and safety surfacing.
We worked closely with the Academy to ensure everything went to plan smoothly and the finished development now serves as a grand focal point within the school grounds. It was a great project to have worked on!
Richard Avenue Primary School
Richard Avenue Primary School contacted Creative Play as they wanted to completely transform their outdoor space. They wanted to provide an abundance of sports and fitness opportunities that could be accessed during break times as well for PE lessons and after-school sports clubs. Along with a MUGA the school also hoped to include fitness equipment.
With such a strong focus it was essential that we were in continuous communication with Richard Avenue Primary School to ensure we met all their sports and fitness requirements. For the Multi-use Games Area (MUGA) we wanted to ensure a number of sports could be played so we incorporated various sports court markings into the green Wetpour Safety Surfacing – including tennis and football. The goal ends were then customised with bespoke engravings to add an extra personal touch. Together with Richard Avenue, we also decided to include a number of outdoor fitness equipment units in a separate area. Including our Double Air Walker and Arm and Pedal Bike, these items were then grouped into a trail to create an instant fitness circuit ideal for PE lessons. Artificial Grass Safety Surfacing was then incorporated into this area to provide a natural-looking, durable surface.
With a complex bespoke MUGA and a large number of outdoor fitness equipment stations to install it was essential that we kept in constant correspondence with all involved on the Richard Avenue development to ensure that the project was executed to the highest of standards.
With a large amount of safety surfacing also needed for this project, our equipment and surfacing teams successfully collaborated together to create a strong final outcome. Well done to all involved!
Rushbrook Primary Academy
Moving from their old site, Gorton Mount, Rushbrook Primary Academy wanted us to duplicate the trim trail equipment we had previously installed for them. They also wanted to incorporate new equipment that would utilise the larger playground they had at their new site.
Because the new site’s playground was so vast we were excited to work on such a large project. We decided to break the playground down into numerous zones to encourage different aspects of outdoor play.
Firstly, we incorporated the trim trail items Rushbrook Primary Academy had at their old site and arranged them into a classic circuit- such as our Net Tunnel, Overhead Ladder and Leapfrog Posts.
For PE lessons or playtimes we also incorporated our vibrant Target One to encourage a range of sports activities. We also included our popular Dart Activity Centre to encourage more open-ended physical play.
Playboards, such as our Weather Station, Mound Tunnel and Dee Climbing Frame were grouped together in another area to create a more sensory/ imaginative play zone ideal for Rushbrook’s younger pupils. Our Octavia Shelter was added to another area to provide a quiet seating zone, ideal for outdoor lessons or keeping sheltered from the elements.
When we saw the plans for the project at Rushbrook Primary Academy we were excited to be involved with such a big project.
Due to Rushbrook Primary Academy being a new build development, it was essential that all our installation teams coordinated well with all external contractors and teaching staff involved.
All our hard work paid off and the playground development was a success.
Well done to everyone involved!
As you can see, these projects are outstanding and we worked very hard to complete them as we do with each and every project we are successful in obtaining.
If you are looking to update your outdoor play area, don’t hesitate to get in contact with us
Before you do, why not take a look through our wide range of products available