Staff at St Keyna Primary School in Keynsham have been awarded their first official play certificate with support from Bath & North East Somerset Council and the charity Children’s Scrapstore.
Following 15 hours of training from the Children’s Scrapstore, the school’s 10-strong team of lunchtime staff have successfully completed a playwork course endorsed at level 2 by the national organisation SkillsActive.
Bath & North East Somerset Council has loaned the school a Scrapstore PlayPod – a converted shipping container in the playground which is filled with fun, colourful materials designed to encourage children to play outside.
All contents are supplied by the Children’s Scrapstore which collects and reuses clean waste materials from local businesses, such as foam shapes, cardboard and plastic tubes and drums, netting and packaging.
Councillor Nathan Hartley, (Lib-Dem, Peasedown), Deputy Leader of Council and Cabinet Member for Early Years, Children and Youth, said: “This project is a huge asset to St Keyna School and the staff have embraced this opportunity to deliver a fantastic experience for the children. Bath & North East Somerset Council’s Play Policy supports children’s right to play both at school and in their communities. Research shows that children’s enjoyment of schools increases when they have a good experience of play; they get lots of physical outdoor activity, come back into class ready to learn and have time to build important friendships.”
Rob Sandel, Deputy Headteacher of St Keyna Primary School, said: “The introduction of the PlayPod has been a tremendously positive development for our school. Our children have really enjoyed the opportunities it has given them to get involved in a very wide variety of imaginative and creative play activities. Watching our oldest children working alongside some of our youngest to build shelters and dens has been great fun for everyone!
“As a school, we are very proud of our lunchtime staff for the commitment they have shown toward gaining this qualification, and look forward to continuing to build on the success our PlayPod has been thus far. We would also like to thank the Friends of St Keyna for all their support and Councillor Brian Simmons for the assistance he has given to our school through the provision of his Ward Councillor Initiative grant.”
For more information about Scrapstore PlayPods and the Children’s Scrapstore contact 0117 908 5644 or: [email protected], or visit http://www.childrensscrapstore.co.uk.
For further information about Bath & North East Somerset Council’s Play Policy contact Alice McColl on 01225 395137 or email: [email protected].
