Gilbert Colvin School
Developing Classroom Skills Through Outdoor Play
The School
Gilbert Colvin School consists of a nursery and primary school with children from the ages of 3 to 11 yrs. There are just under 500 children at the school. It is located in Ilford, Essex. The aim of the teachers is to make the school an exciting place of learning. This includes making the most of the outdoors and the children enjoy regular off site visits to the countryside and benefit from extensive school grounds and a mini orchard.
Outdoor Climbing Play Equipment – The Concept
Gilbert Colvin School were keen to make better use of the large open spaces belonging to the school and contacted us to develop a climbing and play area. They were also keen to ensure that the play equipment stimulated all age groups within the school, including KS1 and KS2. They liked the idea that they could have a free reign with the design and were not limited to standard brochure products. With the help of our sales consultants and CAD design team, we therefore created an amazing climbing ‘maze’ by combining several of our Haystack Climbers and a zip wire.
Encouraging Outdoor Play and Learning For All Ages!
The school was so delighted with the new play equipment that they even made a video of it being built! And all the children and the teachers got to try out the zip wire! From an educational viewpoint, the teachers are pleased as the new installation has enabled them to bring more learning outdoors. This is especially the case for older children who now study various topics using play equipment such as forces (gravity, momentum etc), weights and measures, design and building materials.
Outdoor Plans for the Future
The school is delighted with their new climbing play equipment and zip wire, and are now working hard to develop the playground even more with the help of the School Council. They are also actively seeking sponsorship help as they now have plans for outdoor sand pits, tunnels and water courses.
