An underused space on London Fields’ Morland Estate has been transformed into a “natural” playground.
The Morland Estate and Blanchard Way Tenants and Residents Association (TRA) secured £50,000 in funding with Hackney Council to deliver the project, which has a rope bridge, slide, balance beam and seating area.
Children from the German Kindergarten, which is based in the Morland Community Hall in Gayhurst Road, joined 75 volunteers to plant tree sprouts, hedgerows and six white Himalayan birches last weekend, with supervision from the council's arboricultural experts ahead of its opening in spring.
Julian Blake, chair of the TRA, said: "Helping put some of the finishing touches was not just great fun for everyone involved - it was a clear demonstration of what can be done when residents and the council work together for positive and lasting change."
Backing given by the London Marathon Charitable Trust, Greater London Authority, National Lottery, Woodland Trust, Hackney Parochial Charities, the German Kindergarten and the family of the late Len Brown who lived on the estate.
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