pentagon play logo

Lakeside Primary School’s Outdoor Space for their EYFS Pupils

Posted on by Samantha Tolley

The Customer

Lakeside Primary School in Cheltenham strives to ensure that their pupils have all the skills needed for life, and that they are building and developing these skills from an early age.

Helping children to reach their full potential is at the forefront of Lakeside’s teaching goals, and creating an exciting and engaging outdoor play space that encourages learning through play supports this fully.

three children sit in the large covered sand pit and they dig in the sand

Their Objectives

Lakeside Primary School had already had one area of their playground developed with Pentagon Play when they decided to work with us again to refurbish their second space.

A wooded area, there were lots of removals needed to make the space usable for the pupils, so this was where Pentagon got started.

There were some elements that were crucial for Lakeside to incorporate into their new space, and here are just a few:

  1. An Outdoor Shelter for a extra space, and an easy transition from indoor to outdoor learning.
  2. A Messy Play Space where pupils can experiment and explore with different materials for sensory development and understanding.
  3. Brand New Surfacing to cover the complex space, making it a safer environment for pupils to play and explore independently.

Our Approach

Outdoor Learning Consultant, Nicole Fairman, tried to think practically about the outdoor space, making it as multi-use as possible, for teaching, learning and play.

Nicole worked to create a versatile provision, full of learning opportunities for children of all ages and abilities.

two little girls stand in the messy play mud space and play with the mud kitchens

To optimise learning space, Nicole added a 9m x 4.5m Freestanding Timber Canopy for pupils to enjoy. Pupils can now continue their learning in the fresh air, under the shelter from any rain or snow!

Nicole enhanced the natural features of the space, adding an Octagonal Tree Seat to the space, meaning pupils can sit and chat with their peers, immersing themselves in nature.

This bright space is now inviting and engaging for the children at Lakeside Primary, and it’s definitely more useable that the environment was before.

a little girl crosses the play builder engineer set

The Results

This new space is now full of different elements for the children to explore, both in independent and guided play.

The zone now includes plenty of messy play resources, including a Mud Kitchen with Oven and Mud Kitchen Island.

a little girl stands at the mud kitchen and mixes and makes with the mud

Children can create their own little restaurants, serving their friends and using their creativity to invent magical menus.

Taking ingredients and weighing them out in the Weighing Scales, before transitioning them to the kitchen using the Rope and Pulley Materials Mover helps children develop their knowledge and understanding on mathematics concepts, as well as physical skills such as upper body strength.

three children sit inside the sand pit and fill buckets with sand

For the pupils that don’t love Mud, they can still get involved in the messy play with the sand provisions.

Children can use the Sand Table with Lid and Covered Sand Box to imagine themselves in the desert, creating complex sand castles and wonderful sand inventions.

a child stands with a blue spade and digs in the covered sand pit

Or, if they’re more into construction play, children will love immersing themselves in the Play Builder Engineer Set, where they can imagine themselves as architects and builders.

We hope that Lakeside Primary School love this new space, and we loved working on this project.

children build using the play builder

If you’re interested in redeveloping your EYFS Play Space, Contact Us Today and get started with your ideas.

Or, take a look at some more EYFS case studies to get more inspiration!



Return to Projects