Children enjoy their new play facilities

FIR Bank Primary School head teacher Hazel MacKay and Tom Biggs, from Creative Play, pictured with children from the school council who helped design the new play area

AFTER their hard work persuading their Royton Primary School to provide better outdoor play facilities, pupils are finally enjoying playtime in their new playground.

Members of Fir Bank Primary's school council helped to transform the outdoor play area after appealing for an improved outdoor space for key stage two pupils.

Head teacher Hazel MacKay took their ideas on board and the new playground, designed, built and manufactured by family firm Creative Play, has been unveiled.

"Children from our school council, who represent all our key stage two pupils, came to me and said they felt their outdoor facilities weren't as good as key stage one and could we look at improving them," said Mrs MacKay. "I am keen to make a difference and thought it could be a very meaningful project for our school and surrounding community.

"As well as enhancing their physical development, the new facility seems to have fostered a real spirit of co-operation as they help each other to tackle different sections, like the climbing wall and the fireman's pole.

"The children are encouraging each other and waiting their turn rather than pushing and shoving and it's lovely to see.

With features including a 'watch tower', fireman's pole, and climbing wall, the new play area is proving so popular that teachers are currently in the process of timetabling break times to accommodate the pupils at different times.

The new facility is also encouraging the children to be more active, sociable and better able to concentrate when they return to lessons.

School council member Oliver Morgan (10) is delighted with the new play facilities. "It is brilliant in every way. Everyone enjoys it and it gives us something fun to do at break time.

"It's also getting us active because before it was built, we'd just walk around.

"When we were designing it we really liked the idea of a watch tower because we can watch the football matches being played on the pitch nearby."

Creative Play's Design Director Tom Briggs who oversaw the project, said: "It was terrific working with the children and we took their ideas and incorporated them into the designs.

"We created large printed visuals to create impact for the children so they could display them in their classrooms.

"We've since heard from Mrs MacKay that there is more co-operation, less arguing and more physical activity among the children and it's really satisfying to play a role in that."