Enhancing the playground for play and learning
Developing a unified strategy for outdoor play and learning
Building on existing parent and school initiatives in this area, we are now taking the important step of developing a unified Outdoor Play and Learning Strategy for the school.
This work is an important part of realising the school’s vision that children become passionate, knowledgeable advocates for the natural environment, sustainable practices, and healthy, active lifestyles.
In support of the school’s vision, the strategy will be a coordinated plan to help the school set and achieve measurable goals for improving access to and use of its outdoor spaces. It will support integration of time spent outside into children’s days, and identify ways that our outdoor space could be enhanced to improve children’s play and learning experiences. It will also provide a resource for fundraising.
The strategy will consist of three sections, mirroring the three stages of the process
- Evidence base and key findings – The first stage is information gathering, to form an evidence base, which will be captured in a set of headline key findings. Our evidence base incorporates input gathered from students, parents, and staff, along with analysis of the opportunities, constraints, and patterns of use of our grounds. We thank all of you who responded to the recent playground survey for your input!
- Strategic principles and compendium of projects – Building on the key findings and our overarching vision for the school, the heart of the strategy will be set of strategic principles, along with a compendium of projects. The compendium will consist of various initiatives at different scales, costs, and time frames. Projects may include the creation of new play areas or structures, the development of outdoor learning zones, the enhancement of existing spaces, or the introduction of sustainable features, for example
- Delivery plan – The final section of the strategy will be a delivery plan, that prioritises projects and sets a timeline for implementation.
We are currently nearing the end of the information-gathering stage, and look forward to incorporating responses to the parent survey as we identify projects in the second stage of work. The strategy is being led by Anne Jaluzot – Green infrastructure planning consultant, in collaboration with the school, the PTA, and other parents with expertise and enthusiasm in this area.
Committee:
Anne Jaluzot – Green infrastructure planning consultant
Marco Cerati – Chartered Landscape Architect
PTA
Staff – Nadia Khan & David Gulliford – Deputy Heads
Communication and information sharing:
PTA open meeting
Stall at the Summer Fair