Viking ran a competition asking pupils across the UK to create a picture of their ideal outdoor space – from playgrounds and outdoor classrooms to sensory and environmental gardens. Kesaia beat off stiff competition after 10,500 pupils entered the competition.
The judges chose Kesaia’s entry because they were so impressed with her imaginative design that included an eco-friendly design which featured a growing area, recycling bin and accessible ramp. Kesaia will see her dream design built before her very eyes in the grounds of the school.
Emily Norman, Head Teacher, St Matthew’s Primary Schools, said: “Like many inner city primary schools, St Matthew’s needs to maximise the benefits of the outside space available to it. Maintaining these areas and the equipment in them can be quite a challenge, but Kesaia’s inspirational and winning playground design has given our school a wonderful opportunity to revamp and renew our playground facilities.”
John O’Keeffe, Commercial Director at Office Depot commented: “With schools being affected by the drastic public sector cuts in the UK, many [schools] have had to abandon any plans to regenerate their building, playground and outdoor areas, which is a real shame.
“At Viking we believe that playgrounds and outdoor spaces are essential as they provide young people with the interactive means to encourage learning and stimulate their imaginations. We are thrilled that so many schoolchildren entered the competition and Kesaia was certainly a worthy winner with her excellent design. We look forward to starting the building work.”
Viking teamed up with Playforce, a leading provider of high quality school playground equipment, to provide the professionally-designed and built space. Kesaia will also receive a laptop for herself worth £300.
Colin MacAdam, Managing Director, Playforce said: “Play is inherent to a child’s social, physical and emotional development, and most importantly, is something they love to do. Playforce was thrilled to take part in this competition to encourage creativity to flourish, and the fact that 10,500 schools entered really demonstrates children’s interest and enjoyment in outdoor play. We were hugely impressed by the array of imaginative entries.”
