The new playground at Aylward Academy combines basketball courts with flower beds and table tennis

The new Aylward Academy playground and (inset) the ribbon-cutting event (credit Lift Aylward)

Pupils in Edmonton have designed a new playground for their school.

Supported by construction firm Taylor Woodrow, which is currently delivering strategic infrastructure works at Meridian Water, 27 students from Aylward Academy competed in five teams to redesign the playground space for year sevens at the school in Windmill Road.

Every week, a new design discipline was introduced with construction experts visiting to lead specialist workshops. Towards the end of the project, students pitched their final proposals to a panel of judges and a winning design was chosen.

Over the summer holidays, Taylor Woodrow and its supply chain partners transformed the chosen playground design into reality. What was once a sloping playground that flooded, is now an “attractive and accessible zone for leisure, learning, games, outdoor eating and gardening”.

There is a rain garden and a shelter incorporated in the design, to ensure it can be enjoyed in the wet weather.

Within the twelve weeks, school participants were also lucky enough to attend a reward trip to a live construction site. Several students are now discussing work experience with Lift Aylward and Taylor Woodrow.

One of the students in the winning team, Kavyan Matadar, said: “Plan and Pitch has been an amazing experience for me. I got to bring my ideas to life while working in a team. We put a lot of thought in to the design to ensure the new cohort of Year 7 students had a fun yet sustainable playground.”

Josh Spavins from Taylor Woodrow said: “The idea behind this project was to leave a genuine tangible legacy in the community. We hoped to inspire young people by helping them experience a variety of construction careers; 93% of participants are now exploring careers in the industry.

“My colleagues and supply chain partners have enjoyed the project as much as the students. As a collective, we’re all proud of what has been achieved in collaboration. Construction is a wonderful industry to be a part of, and we look forward to seeing more bright young minds join.”

Principal Joseph Lawlor said: “This exciting new space will give younger students a safe, welcoming place to play, build friendships and thrive — a lasting legacy of Taylor Woodrow’s commitment to young people and our community.”

The recreational space has been open to the current year sevens since the start of term, with the official launch earlier this week, for prospective students and their families, representatives from Enfield Council and Taylor Woodrow.

Assistant principal Jo O Gorman said: “Our students had an incredible experience, with the team at Taylor Woodrow giving us so much — including work experience and project experience, to build a lasting legacy for our pupils.”

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