Manor Heath Park is in the centre of Halifax and has been a very popular attraction for many years. The area offers woodland walks, the water gardens, and, also the Jungle Experience. However, the playground equipment at Manor Park was old and did not cater for the needs of many visitors. The Calderdale Parent and Carers Council had been working for four years on a project to transform the playground. They were very pleased when Yorkshire TV viewers voted for them to receive funding to turn their dream into reality.
Our proposal for the scheme reflected the Sutcliffe Play ethos of using creativity and innovation to give play spaces invisible inclusively, stimulating and challenging whilst also incorporating a necessary element of risk. Due to the importance of making the playground equipment suitable for disabled children as well as the able bodied. Design features such as ramps that provide enough space for wheelchairs to turnaround in, have been incorporated in the scheme.
The scheme won the support of the local community through consultation making it feel like a real community effort organised by local people for the benefit of local people. As well as consultation with local people market research was carried out on 25 local school children in order to help design the playground in a way that would best meet the needs of the children who would be using it.
The completed scheme includes an inclusive Playzone system with ramps and multi level play stations, a rotating dish roundabout, basket swing, springies and a boat seat.