London Bangla A Force for the community…
Emdad Rahman
EASTEND HOMES AND its Holland Estate Estate Management Board (EMB) arranged and delivered a community event on the Holland estate to celebrate the Tower Hamlets Play Street event and to also mark the official opening of the recently refurbished estate playground.
For this special event the estate area and service road adjacent to the playground was free of traffic between 12.00 noon and 4.00pm. Activities on the day included lots of children’s activities, henna, games, arts & craft, bouncy castles and much more. The event was thoroughly enjoyed by the residents and especially the children.
John Henderson, Managing Director, said “EastendHomes is delighted with Holland Estate’s new innovative play space. It is testament to the vision of the Holland Estate Resident Board who have driven the project with ideas, creativity, collaboration and fun. They have created a unique play environment for their community to enjoy and how appropriate to celebrate its official opening on London’s Car Free Day with a special Play Street event. Congratulations to all the residents who made it happen.”
Local resident Gerry King was pleased with the event. He said, “this has been made possible by all of your hard work and coming together as a community.”
Jailmake, the innovative designers of the playground, continually consulted with residents and Eastend Homes throughout the design and build of this magnificent play area fit for the Princes and Princesses of Holland Estate!
Kabir Ahmed, Chair of the Holland Estate Management Board, thanked Tim Elliott, a resident of the Holland estate who essentially project managed on behalf of residents, and JailMake – who designed and custom built the play area. Taking inspiration from the cityscape surrounding the estate, Jailmake’s design and build scheme was based on echoing the urban architecture – scaling structures down to form a model city.
The all weather ground surface provides a landscape of rolling hills and the “building blocks” that form both the play structures and supporting furniture rise from it like skyscrapers. This cost effective design repeats simple, well made structures across the space, with custom designed modular elements such as hand and footholds and rope fixings creating play features. The blocks that replace the traditional furniture with sculptural forms create a comprehensive aesthetic across the site, creating an environment for both physical and imaginative play.
The site is split into sections, each with its target ability range and activity. There is low level surface play with gentle slide for the youngest children, progressing onto hill structures and low level climbing, building up to taller structures that can be climbed up (but not on top of) for more advanced play.
The area is designed to feel welcoming and safe. Existing trees and planting features are kept and enhanced, and a slim fence on the perimeter aims at stopping unwelcome sitting and loitering, whilst inside there is purpose built seating that fits within the “building block” style.
With all the furniture and structures incorporated neatly into the “building block” design, the area has a very strong aesthetic where space is maximised, dedicating more space to play and development. Fast growing grasses and ferns have been planted along the east boundary, and a hedge plants will form the perimeter on the West boundary as they grow over the next few months into next spring.
The overall look of the play area is bright and it is a distinctly child-friendly zone.
This will be finalised by incorporating a mural across the back wall that complements the playground design. This will be carried out as a collaborative project with an artist, and painted by residents as a community project.
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