Our entry is one of the $100,000 Grand Prize Winners of the 2014 Aviva Community Fund !!!
THANK YOU SO MUCH TO ALL OF OUR SUPPORTERS !!!
Get the full coverage here !!!
THANK YOU SO MUCH TO ALL OF OUR SUPPORTERS !!!
Get the full coverage here !!!
SENIOR PLAYGROUND UPGRADE
OverviewFundraising efforts by the Clifford Bowey School Foundation are currently directed towards upgrading the Senior Playground. The current playground is due for replacement because of its aging wood structures and because it is not accessible to students who are wheelchair or walker-bound. The play structure itself provides limited play for these students, and the sand is a barrier to approaching the structure.
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Current Senior Playground
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The plans for the upgraded Senior Playground include an accessible play structure with ramped components, a gazebo with accessible picnic tables, and a variety of accessible swings. Accessories would include shade structures, a tetherball game, a spinner, and a balance beam. A key feature of the new playground will be a rubberized play surface which provides ease of access for wheelchairs and walkers, better cushioning for falls, and a much safer alternative to sand for a number of our students who have high oral sensory needs.
A ramped accessible play structure under consideration
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A dish swing
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How the New Playground will Benefit Clifford Bowey Students
The upgraded playground will dramatically expand the opportunities for play for our wheelchair and walker-bound students, allowing them to access the play structures themselves. Students who may not have any opportunities otherwise will get to experience the motion of a swing, promoting their sense of movement and balance. The new playground will benefit all of the students with enhanced opportunities to exercise gross motor skills, communication skills, and social skills. The rubberized play surface will protect all of our students who are vulnerable to falls, and will address the issue of students who will literally eat loose materials such as sand or mulch due to sensory needs. Most of our students have limited opportunities for physical exercise and depend on a playground such as this!
How the New Playground will Benefit the Ottawa Region
Once completed, this new playground will provide a safe and inclusive outdoor play haven for the entire Ottawa region outside of school hours. The school is centrally located and within a short drive whether families are coming from Orleans, Ottawa South, Downtown, Westboro, Nepean, and Barrhaven. Children and youth will be able to enjoy safe, accessible, and fun play with their special needs siblings and friends at this new playground, promoting family and community closeness. While there are a few other parks in Ottawa with accessible play structures, the Clifford Bowey playground will be unique in offering a rubberized play surface within a fenced area.
Projected Costs
The projected cost of upgrading the Senior Playground can be broken down as follows:
Site Preparation...........................................$60,000
Rubber Surfacing.........................................$80,000
Play Structures.............................................$70,000
Total Cost...................................................$210,000
The Clifford Bowey School Foundation has been running fundraising efforts towards this upgrade for the past 2 years and has additional fundraising events planned for the 2014-2015 school year. All support for these efforts is greatly appreciated.
Site Preparation...........................................$60,000
Rubber Surfacing.........................................$80,000
Play Structures.............................................$70,000
Total Cost...................................................$210,000
The Clifford Bowey School Foundation has been running fundraising efforts towards this upgrade for the past 2 years and has additional fundraising events planned for the 2014-2015 school year. All support for these efforts is greatly appreciated.
The Playground Vision
In the video below, two parents from Clifford Bowey Public School share the vision of the new accessible playground and how it will benefit the students and the entire Ottawa area.