Gower Road, in the town of Hessle near Hull, is home to a community play space which has served local families well since its installation. The playground sits in the centre of a large suburban area, and by early 2025, it was in clear need of a thorough regeneration. We were delighted to collaborate with Hull City Council on this project, and give this vital space a well-deserved fresh start.
The council’s vision for Gower Road was far-reaching, and we sought to meet all of their key requirements as we commenced work on our design. Firstly, the existing playground had grown dated, with opportunities for toddler, group and social play lacking. Our design tackled this by removing all but three of the existing units, and introducing a vibrant selection of new equipment which would massively boost the park’s potential number of users from the current 40 to over 100. We also planned to update the existing playground infrastructure, by giving the benches a fresh coat of paint.
However, our client’s ambition for the space also went much further. Their aim was to transform Gower Road into Hull’s first fully disability-inclusive playground, unique among the city’s 94 play spaces; it was a vision that we felt great affinity with as an inclusive-focused play provider. Consequently, our design incorporated many inclusive items amongst the new equipment, as well as a wide array of colours, sensory and interactive elements, and textures. These additions would deliver engaging play opportunities for children with a wide range of conditions, including physical disabilities, cognitive and visual impairments, neurodiverse conditions, and behavioural or emotional challenges.
The space’s surfacing would also be refreshed to reflect these inclusive intentions, with the removal of the uneven bark mulch sections which had proven unnecessarily challenging for visitors with limited mobility. In their place, we utilised wetpour to ensure the entire space was completely even and fully positioned on a single level. This would ensure equality of access for all, creating a space that wheelchairs, prams or pushchairs could traverse with ease. It also gave the playground a noticeable aesthetic lift, removing the scruffy looking bark chippings and broken tarmac edges in favour of a much smoother, more consistent material.
Additionally, this thorough resurfacing allowed us to make use of a grassy area which had been unused in the existing playground, opening up extra space for even more play provision. We also planned for each different area of the space to be separated by internal paths, allowing users of different ages to play within distinct, age-appropriate zones if they wished. One area would focus on toddler provision, while another would be geared towards older juniors and teenagers, and the central space would cater for children across the entire age range.
As we undertook the installation process, we endeavoured to overcome a number of obstacles which presented themselves at different points. At the outset, we were compelled to make alterations to our design, refining our plans for the edging of the space after discovering unexpectedly difficult ground conditions on-site. This was achieved without delays or disruption to the project, and constant contact with our client enabled us to identify the most workable, cost-effective solution.
Later, we had to contend with many instances of anti-social behaviour, with our equipment regularly facing interference after dark, and our response was decisive and constructive. Firstly, we dispatched members of our team to the site numerous times to repair or replace equipment which had been damaged, and secondly, we sourced private security (at no extra expense to our customer) to keep watch over the site during the surfacing stage, as this was the most sensitive part of the installation and needed to be left undisturbed if the wetpour was to properly set.
Having overcome these challenges, the project was completed on time and to a high standard, and today Gower Road has been transformed with a broad selection of thrilling and inclusive new equipment:
In the central area, the most striking addition is our Climber For All – a colourful multi-play unit which offers six different ways to climb, and can accommodate almost 40 users. It also offers a huge range of inclusive features, including a drag ramp with foot holds and pull-up ropes for users with limited mobility, and rubber encapsulated decks which offer a softer surface for users to shuffle across (they’re also wider than regular decks, avoiding bottlenecks). In addition, the main deck includes an overhead roof for shelter, as well as seating for children to relax and interact. This deck affords access to a rounded slide, with wheelchair-accessible side transfer at the top and bottom.
Close by, our Inclusive Springie features an open front, a large saddle seat and a high back rail, allowing children with different access requirements to access the unit and enjoy the springing sensation. It is joined by one of our Communications Panels, displaying a grid of relevant symbols that enable children – particularly non-verbal users on the autistic spectrum or those with Special Educational Needs – to convey messages to their peers or parents/carers. These tried and tested symbols are aligned with PECS (Picture Exchange Communication System), a respected framework which is used nationally by the NHS.
Completing this area is one of our metal swing frames, which includes a Bumper Seat for a classic swinging experience, our specifically designed Inclusive Seat for children with increased accessibility requirements, and a Nest Seat with an open birds’ nest design, which supports a group of children swinging at once.
Elsewhere, our centrepiece Stay To Play unit is the biggest new addition to the toddler area. This colourful multi-play delivers a range of inclusive elements including a wheelchair accessibility ramp and a series of four ‘shuffle and crawl’ decks, which facilitate access to the highest points of the unit. The unit also includes a number of external dynamic play features which can be accessed from ground level – greatly broadening its overall accessibility. The toddler area is finished with a second Inclusive Springie and another metal swing frame, with one of our Cradle Seats for younger visitors alongside another Bumper Seat.
Nearby, the junior/teenager section features our Two Tower unit, an eye-catching climbing frame with two distinct sides of varying difficulty, both divided by a set of monkey bars. One side is comprised of a ladder, slide and fireman’s pole, while the other includes a pull-up ramp, vertical net and pole climb. Alongside this unit, our Group Inclusive Seesaw inspires colourful balancing fun, and a cutaway panel on one end enables easy side transfer for less mobile children. This unit’s large central platform has also seen it being used as a safe congregating point by teenage girls in other sites, and it is sure to fulfil the same function at Gower Road – greatly broadening the space’s gender inclusivity.
The final addition is our Inclusive Dish Roundabout, which brings dynamic spinning fun and good body support for two users (including those with limited mobility), and it is set at an appropriate height for wheelchair side transfer.
Lisa Bendelow, Neighbourhood Coordinator for Hull City Council, said:
‘We love the new play park at Gower Road, it’s great and the community are really pleased. The large climbing frame, swings, and roundabout are well used and popular, and we are now able to use the space to hold events in and around the park. It is the only major playpark in the Pickering ward, and was very much needed.’
This project challenged our team at every stage as we worked hard to revitalise Gower Road’s popular community playground. We showed resilience in the face of a number of obstacles, and ultimately overcame them to deliver the city’s first fully inclusive play space – a space which now possesses a broad appeal to children of every age, gender, ability and more. We’re proud that this trailblazing legacy will light the way for future inclusive play developments across Hull, whilst bringing big benefits for local children in the years to come.