Safe, secure, inclusive and accessible ñ that is how Kathryn Owens envisions Horizon School's future playground.
Owens is the chair of the school's parent advisory council. Currently, the school, which serves people with special needs, is raising money to replace its old playground that is scheduled for demolition this year due to an eroded foundation.
ìThe playground that has been typically used by our students is unsafe and will be torn down and if we don't replace it, we won't have any other outdoor apparatus that's really accessible to our students,î Owens said.
The new playground will be built behind the school.
On Feb. 28, Owens accepted a $1,000 cheque from Dave Nurcombe, vice-president of the Central Alberta Oilmen's Committee. It was the first sum of cash the school received toward the project.
So far, the school has raised close to $50,000 of its $177,000 goal, including committed funds and gifts in kind. However, those funds have yet to be collected.
Owens said the school aims to have the playground finished by this fall.
The proposed new playground, designed by Andy Sweetman of The Playground Guys, is more than the typical composite of swings and slides.
It is designed to be accessible to all students, regardless of their abilities. The playground is meant to stimulate the senses, including features like soundboards, different textures and bright colours for those who are visually impaired.
Multiple students can use the playground's components simultaneously, encouraging cooperative play and social interaction, Owens said.
Because students at the Horizon School range from five to 20 years old, construction must be sturdy and tall enough to accommodate older kids, Owens said.
One piece of specialized equipment is called the ìCozy Cocoon.î It is an egg-shaped structure that spins once the user has crawled in. It is designed for kids who like the feeling of being enveloped, Owens said.
The Cozy Cocoon isn't what comes to mind when people think of playgrounds, but Owens explains that not all kids play the same way.
ìSo many of our kids with sensory issues like that sense of feeling closed in because they know where they are in the world,î she said.
Once completed, the playground will be enclosed with a fence, allowing kids to roam freely within the playground's perimeter.
ìThat will also allow them to have the maximum amount of independent play on the playground,î Owens said. ìA lot of our students have an extreme amount of supervision in their lives because they require it.î
Horizon School's students come from all over Chinook's Edge School Division, with the vast majority residing outside of Olds in neighbouring towns like Carstairs, Cremona, Sundre, Bowden, Innisfail and Penhold.
To donate to the school's playground project, cheques can be sent to Chinook's Edge School Division with ìHorizon Playgroundî written on the memo line. Donors will receive a tax-deductible receipt.
