PLAYTIME has been transformed into an outdoor adventure for the children at Markland Hill Primary School.

The school now has a specially- designed playground that has brought children’s ideas to life.

The play area was created by Bolton-based Cool Canvas which aims to get children playing and exploring the great outdoors.

Features include a water tower, which collects rain water, and a mud kitchen, which was inspired by the kitchen in popular children’s film Chitty Chitty Bang Bang where Caractacus Potts invents all sort of contraptions.

The area, as well as providing hours of fun for the children, can also be used to enhance classroom learning, teachers say.

Oliver Wotherspoon, from Cool Canvas, said: “The children were consulted on what they wanted.

“The teachers wanted somewhere where the pupils could get creative and take part in activities such as being able to dig.

“We used the children’s ideas such as using the water tower to collect rain water.

“The children kept calling my dad Caractacus Potts, which I think inspired him, as he was looking for all sorts of things in the garage to use and invent things.”

The adventure playground has been created in an open green area of the school.

Mr Wotherspoon said: “We work with the school to see what they want and with the budget the school has.”

He added: “The children have had so much involvement in the project, helping us with everything including collecting our tea and coffee orders.

“They were so happy with the new playground, and there was a real buzz when the area was finished.”

Rachel Mariner, the school’s early years’ leader, said: “The children can’t wait to be able to play on it.

“The area was not really used much before, but now there is so much that the children can do.

“It is real outdoor learning, encouraging problemsolving and risk-taking.

“Before we would take resources outside but they were not learning anything that they could not learn in the classroom.”