True play is when children create their own rules and boundaries. It is at its most pure when it is freely chosen, intrinsically motivated, self-determined and children are simply given the opportunity to find out for themselves. The designs exemplify the best practice in play strategy curriculum and were fully backed by City of Edinburgh Council as an exciting initiative with clear benefits not only to learning, but also the physical & emotional health and well-being of our young people.

HarrisonStevens was approached by the Cramond Primary School Parent Staff Association to help them solve a problem. Although it has fairly generous space provision, the school suffered from a large section of it being inaccessible due to a steep grassed embankment, that when wet was impassable. The result was to render 60% of the outdoor space unusable for large parts of the year. While the original brief was to ‘deal with the mud’, it rapidly became apparent there was a much greater ambition for the school’s play provision.