New Playground Equipment After Four Year Wait for Crymlyn Primary School
Pupils at a South Wales school are making full use of their new playground equipment after spending almost four years fundraising to buy it.
Children at Crymlyn Primary School, Jersey Marine, Neath, are delighted with the timber trail installed by award-winning Playforce, one of the country's leading providers of outdoor play equipment.
"They love it so much we have quite a struggle trying to get them off it," said the school's head teacher, Sue John. "They all used to look forward to playing on the school field and couldn't wait until the summer, but now all they do is complain when they're sent onto the field because then they can't use the timber trail.
To raise enough money to buy the playground equipment every member of the school community - pupils, staff, parents, governors and friends - joined in the effort. They organised all manner of sponsored events including a bike ride, marathon walk and the braver mums even took part in a sponsored sleep over in a haunted building.
"I didn't go on the 'haunted sleep-over' but I have huge respect for those that did as they said there was substantial ghostly activity!" explained Mrs John.
The need for better playground equipment was identified in the school's recent Ofsted report. Now playtimes have become as much a part of the children's education as lesson time.
Playforce, a Wiltshire-based company, prides itself on creating outdoor playground play environments that stimulate children's imaginations, improve social behaviour, stretch and develop muscles and confidence. The children create their own games and magical worlds using the Playforce timber trail obstacles.
Each piece of playground equipment is designed to develop different skills or muscle groups and all of it is guaranteed to inspire the imagination.
"The children use the timber trail in so many ways and now they have got to grips with its physical challenges they are beginning to think of great imaginative ways to use it," said Mrs John.
