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When Mahurangi Matters was informed that Warkworth School had replaced its old sandpit we expected a simple upgrade. However, during a recent visit we soon discovered it’s much more than that.
Located on the junior campus, this is an innovative new space with sand and water play that comprises four colour-coded sandboxes, each with its own function, and a gazebo-style structure in the middle that channels water off its roof.
It was purpose-built by Mason Contractors and meticulously designed by a student’s father, Clynt White, who also happens to be a landscape architect.
It officially opened on Friday, March 28.
Principal Karney Dawson said the new space was needed to meet the demands of an ever-growing roll and could cater for a variety of students with different needs.
“The idea is that we’ve got four sandpits: one yellow, two blue and one green. Yellow is the energetic sandpit and about exploration while green is for more quiet, calmer activities,” he said.
“Blue will have water play with two big drums on the ground to collect rainwater as it comes off the roof (of the gazebo that sits over the two blue sandpits) with a tap that can be turned on and off to show kids how water conservation works.”
Parent Teachers Association (PTA) secretary and accessibility consultant Jess Brown said they wanted to make sure this area was accessible for all the kids at the school.
“So that includes neurodivergent kids with sensory needs. A lot of them really love sandpit play, as it’s quite tactile,” she said.
“Many of these kids love to be on their own and have a quiet space. Some of them prefer to play with their hands and not sit in the sandpit, which is why we’ve got raised areas, so they can reach in from outside.”
A pathway was also built to make the four sandboxes more accessible.
“When it was just one sandpit, it was all grass and could get quite muddy in winter. Now if anyone has a wheelchair or crutches, or if a teacher needs to come over here, they don’t have to deal with the mud,” Brown said.
She added: “So it’s a complete redesign.”
PTA deputy chair Emily Sunderland said the project cost around $30,000 and fundraising started at the beginning of 2023.
“Every year we do what we call a gold event fundraiser, which is a big event and then we do smaller single fundraisers such as sausage sizzles,” she said.
“For this it was just a whole lot of events. Discos, quiz nights, family picnic nights, sausage sizzles, lollipop day – you know, it’s all of those days.”
Dawson said Mason Contractors, the company contracted for the project, went above and beyond.
“Masons did it over Christmas, a good month’s worth of work to put it all in. There were a couple of little alterations that we had to make just for the contours of the land,” he said.
“They always had the best interests of the school at heart. Before every decision, they’d involve us and ask what we thought. It was never to make the job easier, it was always to make it the best it could be for the kids.”
